Spatial and Temporal Modeling of Beach Use: A Case Study of East Anglia,UK

As tourists are sensitive to weather conditions and changes to the environments they visit, it is likely that climate change will affect coastal recreation in the future. To understand these impacts, it is first important to quantify how visitor numbers are associated with beach characteristics and weather patterns. Using the East Anglian coastline, UK, as a case study, information on the spatial distribution of visitors recorded from aircraft flights is combined with beach characteristic data in a Geographical Information System. In addition, surveys are undertaken at two beaches to assess temporal variations in visitation. The study finds a diverse range of characteristics are associated with visitor numbers. These findings are evaluated alongside the anticipated effects of climate change and management policies. Although it is predicted that warmer weather will increase visitor numbers overall, sea-level rise may reduce numbers at wide sandy beaches, which are currently most preferred by tourists.     

U.S. Coastal Flood Insurance,Risk Perception,and Sea-Level Rise: A Perspective

This article uses coastal flood insurance policy in the United States to discuss the influence of historical and existing policy frameworks on the development of new policy directions in coastal management within a context of risk perception. It is presumed that under conditions of current and future sea-level rise, coastal planning will have to develop forward-looking policy instruments focused on managing human expectations, particularly the expectations of those living along the coast. Planning will be supported, in large part, by evolving scientific evidence on sea-level rise and the attendant hazards that accompany this phenomenon. It is likely that policy proposals for future coastal management will deviate to some degree from previous management practices. The role of previous management practices in supporting a perception of risk that deviates from actual risks is explored using historical and current coastal flood insurance policy in the United States as an example. The goal of this analysis is to highlight the importance of community risk perception, as a function of past policy practice, when considering new coastal management policy directions.     

Classification of Beach Erosion Vulnerability on the Yucatan Coast

Beach erosion can have important socioeconomic and environmental consequences, particularly in tropical regions where tourism is a significant source of income. Although caused by natural processes, erosion is often aggravated by disorderly anthropogenic modification of the coast and extreme events. In Yucatan, Mexico, increasing urban development and deficient coastal management strategies as well as hurricanes have affected beach stability. This has highlighted the need for adequate coastal planning and policies that ensure the protection of key coastal ecosystems, such as beaches and sand dunes. To address this, a methodology to classify the coast according to its vulnerability is presented in this work. This methodology assumes that morphological features are indicators of beach evolution and the processes driving it and that these can be associated with different levels of vulnerability. The features considered are beach width, dune vegetation, anthropogenic pressure, and shoreline orientation, which were analyzed through aerial images and a multicriteria evaluation. It was observed that the most vulnerable areas are found near the most developed parts of the coast, where narrow beaches with little dune vegetation dominate. It is expected that this index will be of use to coastal planners and decision makers, particularly in the identification of critical zones.     

CZM in California: Successes and Challenges Ahead

California has a forty-year history of successful coastal zone management. The San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission, the California Coastal Commission, and the State Coastal Conservancy have protected and made accessible hundreds of miles of shoreline. While each agency has played a critical role, this article focuses on the Coastal Commission. Implementing the California Coastal Act, the Coastal Commission has partnered with local government, other agencies, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and the public to concentrate new development in already developed areas, and much of the rural coastal zone looks as it did in 1972. The Commission has protected and expanded public shoreline access through its regulatory actions. Using strong ecological science the Commission has protected a wide variety of sensitive habitats and wetlands. And under the authority of the Coastal Zone Management Act, the Commission has reviewed thousands of federal projects to assure that they are consistent with the Coastal Act. Challenges continue, though, including population growth, sea-level rise, and inadequate funding to update local coastal land use plans to address new issues, such as climate change adaptation. New investment is needed at the national, state, and local level to continue the success of the California program.     

Land use implications of sea level rise: A case study at myrtle beach,South Carolina

Abstract

the prospect of global warming and consequent sea level rise will have important implications for coastal communities. this article examines the land use implications of alternate sea level rise scenarios on the city of myrtle beach, south carolina. current trends as well as high and low sea level rise scenarios are superimposed on the city's beach profile and near shore contours to estimate the type and value of land development likely to be impacted.

It is found that losses associated with accelerated sea level rise would be particularly high in the city's hotel district and that overall property loss could range from 21 to 60% of the city's total property value. to lessen these potential losses, coastal communities such as myrtle beach must choose among one of three policy options including: (1) barricade the beach, (2) raise the land, and (3) implement a strategic retreat. specific alternatives within each of these options are explored in turn. the article concludes that successful development plans will incorporate ground rules sensitive to and consistent with dynamic coastal processes.     

Vulnerability of Caribbean Island Cemeteries to Sea Level Rise and Storm Surge

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports that rising seas by the end of this century will increase the severity of coastal flooding and erosion. The Caribbean region is home to many small islands that are vulnerable to sea level rise and storm surge. Much of the literature examining impacts of sea level rise in the Caribbean focuses on ecosystems, infrastructure, and recreation. Few studies have examined how sea level rise will impact historic and culturally important places. In an effort to address this research gap, geographic information systems and crowd-sourced, georeferenced photographs were used to build a first-of-its-kind database of 542 Caribbean small island cemeteries. Vulnerable cemeteries were then identified based upon elevation, proximity to the ocean, and the coastal profile. Over one-fifth of the cemeteries surveyed are within 100 m of the coast. The highest concentrations of vulnerable cemeteries are on flat islands such as the Cayman Islands. Yet, some mountainous islands such as Saint Martin also have potentially vulnerable cemeteries. These findings suggest that the bereaved, cemetery managers, and managers of coastal areas that have cemeteries may have additional considerations when making long-term decisions about where and how to bury the deceased.     

An Assessment of Lake-Level Fluctuations on Beach and Shoreline Changes

Using data collected from May 1978 to November 1996, this article assesses the effects of fluctuating water levels on the beach and shoreline at the Northeast Beach, Point Pelee, Lake Erie, Canada. To compare the serial dynamics of lake levels with net shoreline positional changes and beach net sediment flux, the data are transformed to standard scores to deal with the differences in the units and in the scale associated with each variable. The results demonstrate that over the 18-year period, fluctuating lake levels are associated with shifts in shoreline position and the development of various aggradational and degradational states at the beach. A sustained rapid rise in lake levels will initiate an erosional sequence which will persist even with declining water levels. With a persistent decline in water levels the beach and shoreline will adjust very gradually from unstable, erosional states to an aggradational state. Other results emphasize that those beach sectors directly governed by artificial structures suffered disproportionately higher erosion during high-water levels. Coastal managers must, therefore, be cognizant of the fact that shore protection devices must be carefully designed in order to be effective against the influence of fluctuating lake levels.     

GIS-Based Coastal Behavior Modeling and Simulation of Potential Land and Property Loss: Implications of Sea-Level Rise at Collaroy/Narrabeen Beach,Sydney (Australia)

Rising sea level potentially poses a threat to many coastal areas, thereby possibly affecting coastal environments, including human assets. Taking into account the precau--tionary principle demanded at the Framework Convention for Climate Change in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, coastal managers and planners are required to evaluate the possibility of both physical and economic impacts of sea-level rise. However, long-term and cost-intensive data capture is often not affordable for a first estimation of general trends. To determine physical and economic impacts on a spatial scale of less than 10 km, a rapid and low-cost method is required. A Geographic Information System (GIS), in combination with readily available data and two coastal behaviour models (the Bruun-GIS Model and the Aggradation Model) was applied to simulate shoreline recession caused by a rise in sea level. In addition, the potential impacts of a 50-year design storm were considered in conjunction with sea-level rise. The monetary vulnerability was assessed and combined with the simulated recession rates. This procedure provides a first estimate on the potential risk a locality (here Collaroy/Narrabeen Beach) may face due to the impacts of sea-level rise and/or coastal storms. Overall, the modelling outcome suggests that long-term erosion problems associated with rising sea level are less significant in comparison with those impacts associated with short-term coastal storm events for Collaroy/Narrabeen Beach.     

Coastal erosion and sea level rise: Implications for ocean beach and San Francisco's westside transport project

Abstract

One of the consequences of sea level rise resulting from the greenhouse effect is increased coastal erosion. This article discusses a model of erosion that can be used to estimate the response of beaches to sea level rise. The model is applied to Ocean Beach, California, with particular attention to the consequences of accelerated erosion for the San Francisco Westside Sewer Transport. Results obtained show that erosion produced by accelerated sea level rise could cause substantial damage to the structure. Large expenditures on beach nourishment will be required to protect the transport and the recreational value of the beach.     

A Tool for Coastal Setbacks Demarcation over Rough,Impermeable Shores: The Test Case of Kavala Coastline (Northern Greece)

Although setback zones and lines are considered as a powerful coastal zone management tool ensuring public access, protecting the coastal ecosystem and minimizing natural hazards over developments, the lack of a solid and objective Mediterranean methodological framework for coastal setbacks demarcation appears profound. Especially for countries like Greece, this deficiency leads to long legal disputes encouraging illegal construction on the coastline. In this article a methodology on coastal setbacks demarcation over rocky, impermeable shores is proposed, followed, and implemented along a Greek shoreline, serving as a pilot case study. The methodology is consistent with the requirements of the integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) Protocol and the Greek legislation (L. 2971/2001), aiming to determine the “highest winter waterline,” accounting for the tidal and storm surge effects, the sea-level rise due to climate change impact, the extreme offshore wind and wave analysis, and the maximum potential wave run-up. Such a tool may bridge the gap between legislative provisions and actual ICZM Protocol implementation improving regional coastal management and planning.     

Coastal Erosion in Ghana: Causes,Policies, and Management

Coastal erosion is a serious problem that affects the safety and livelihoods of many coastal dwellers along Ghana's coast. Despite the fact that coastal erosion is a natural phenomenon, erosion trends have been largely aggravated by human-induced factors. This study analyzed shoreline change rates for three neighbouring coastal communities in the Central region of Ghana; Elmina, Cape Coast and Moree. Two epochs were analyzed, 1974–2012 (medium-term) and 2005–2012 (short-term), using ArcGIS and Digital Shoreline Analysis System. Overall, the entire study area recorded average shoreline change rates of ?1.24 myear^?1 and ?0.85 myear^?1 in the medium-term and short-term period respectively. Less consolidated shoreline segments recorded higher erosion rates in both periods while cliffs and rocky segments experienced very little erosion or high stability. Because shorelines undergoing chronic erosion do not fully recover after short-term erosion events such as storms, facilities located close to such shorelines are threatened. Taking a proactive approach to coastal erosion management, such as coastal sand mining prevention, inter-sectoral land use management and adopting a construction setback approach may be prudent for the long-term management of the coast since this recognizes future shoreline changes and safeguards coastal landscape for other uses.     

Integrating Climate and Ocean Change Vulnerability into Conservation Planning

Tropical coastal and marine ecosystems are particularly vulnerable to ocean warming, ocean acidification, and sea-level rise. Yet these projected climate and ocean change impacts are rarely considered in conservation planning due to the lack of guidance on how existing climate and ocean change models, tools, and data can be applied. Here, we address this gap by describing how conservation planning can use available tools and data for assessing the vulnerability of tropical marine ecosystems to key climate threats. Additionally, we identify limitations of existing tools and provide recommendations for future research to improve integration of climate and ocean change information and conservation planning. Such information is critical for developing a conservation response that adequately protects these ecosystems and dependent coastal communities in the face of climate and ocean change.     

Adapting without Retreating: Responses to Shoreline Change on an Inlet-Associated Coastal Beach

Coastal barrier systems around the world are experiencing higher rates of flooding and shoreline erosion. Property owners on barriers have made significant financial investments in physical protections that shield their nearby properties from these hazards, constituting a type of adaptation to shoreline change. Factors that contribute to adaptation on Plum Island, a developed beach and dune system on the North Shore of Massachusetts, are investigated here. Plum Island experiences patterns of shoreline change that may be representative of many inlet-associated beaches, encompassing an equivocal and dynamically shifting mix of erosion and accretion. In the face of episodic floods and fleeting erosive events, and driven by a combination of strong northeast storms and cycles of erosion and accretion, the value of the average Plum Island residence increases by 34% for properties on the oceanfront where protection comprises a publicly constructed soft structure. Even in the face of state policies that ostensibly discourage physical protection as a means of adaptation, coastal communities face significant political and financial pressures to maintain existing protective structures or to allow contiguous groups of property owners to build new ones through collective action. These factors mitigate against adapting to shoreline change by retreating from the coast, thereby potentially increasing the adverse effects of coastal hazards.     

Evolution of coastal hazards policies in the United States

The ocean and Great Lakes coasts of the United States are experiencing widespread economic and environmental damage from coastal flooding and erosion. During this century, public response to such coastal hazards has evolved haphazardly in response to particular disasters. Over time, however, the range of response has broadened as research has helped to refine public understanding of physical coastal processes, and specific disasters have been studied before longer term forms of institutional response have been formulated. Earlier reliance on engineered shoreline protection has been supplemented by beach nourishment, flood insurance, building and land use regulations, coastal zone planning, and other approaches. This article interprets the evolution of such public policy innovations in terms of a model that depicts the interaction of spatially differentiated systems of physical, legal, and cultural phenomena in the coastal context.     

Rising Sea Levels: Helping Decision-Makers Confront the Inevitable

Sea-level rise (SLR) is not just a future trend; it is occurring now in most coastal regions across the globe. It thus impacts not only long-range planning in coastal environments, but also emergency preparedness. Its inevitability and irreversibility on long time scales, in addition to its spatial non-uniformity, uncertain magnitude and timing, and capacity to drive non-stationarity in coastal flooding on planning and engineering timescales, create unique challenges for coastal risk-management decision processes. This review assesses past United States federal efforts to synthesize evolving SLR science in support of coastal risk management. In particular, it outlines the: (1) evolution in global SLR scenarios to those using a risk-based perspective that also considers low-probability but high-consequence outcomes, (2) regionalization of the global scenarios, and (3) use of probabilistic approaches. It also describes efforts to further contextualize regional scenarios by combining local mean sea-level changes with extreme water level projections. Finally, it offers perspectives on key issues relevant to the future uptake, interpretation, and application of sea-level change scenarios in decision-making. These perspectives have utility for efforts to craft standards and guidance for preparedness and resilience measures to reduce the risk of coastal flooding and other impacts related to SLR.     

Historic Monuments Threatened by Coastal Hazards at Boca do Rio,Algarve, Portugal

The coastal stretch of Boca do Rio, western Algarve, Portugal, is experiencing shoreline retreat. Roman ruins are located along the beach section of the coast, and a 17th-century fort is positioned over the cliff section. Both historic monuments are being destroyed by erosion but need to be protected due to their heritage status. Aerial photograph analysis was used to define the evolution of the coast for the period 1945–2001. Shoreline retreat of 0.3 m/year was measured for the sandy coast and 14 mass movements in the cliff face were identified. Considering the rate and style of shoreline evolution, several types of management scenario were evaluated, with the favored measures being the removal of the Roman ruins to a museum and the relocation of the fort inland.     

A Review of Dunes in Today's Society

Prior to Superstorm Sandy, the importance of dunes had been widely overlooked in many coastal societies. However, the stark contrast between New Jersey coastal areas that were and were not protected by dunes has created a positive paradigm shift in coastal law and public dune opinion. Government officials are mandating the construction of artificial dunes along New Jersey's coast, but it is necessary for communities to first understand the complex nature of these unique systems. With the proper knowledge, a dune can be both a protective structure as well as a working habitat that will ultimately better protect upland infrastructure and improve beach health. However, a general lack of terminological consistency among formal media and governing entities makes properly quantifying and assessing dune health difficult and unwarranted ecological conclusions inevitable. Here, dune terminology, “blowout,” “washout,” and “bowling” is clarified and defined and the dynamic nature of dunes is explained.     

南通市沿海滩涂资源围垦开发现状与成效*

通过对南通沿海滩涂资源潜力的分析,结合南通沿海地区当前滩涂围垦现状,总结该区域滩涂围垦所带来的一系列成效。研究表明：南通沿海地区加强滩涂围垦有利于拓展渔业发展空间,提升渔业发展水平;加快陆海产业合理布局,促进产业转型升级;完善港口基础设施,促进临港产业发展;促进港产城融合发展,壮大滨海旅游业。     

岸线变化对天津近岸海域污染物输移扩散影响研究

应用MIKE21数学模型对天津近岸海域潮流场进行数值模拟,同时考虑天津近岸海域5个典型河口污染物输入的影响,计算了大小潮作用下COD输移扩散范嗣,并研究了岸线变化对COD输移扩散范围的影响.结果表明,岸线的变化对北塘口及天津港附近COD的输移扩散有较大影响.岸线变化后,大小潮高低潮时刻对应的0.001 mg/L浓度等值...