One of the top benefits of a living shoreline is erosion control and protection from storms. Shoreline hardening has major impacts on the environment such as causing altering coastal morphology and increases in erosion. When we remove these natural coastlines and implement engineered technologies, we put the ecosystems and also, infrastructure near the shoreline, at risk. Over the past 10 years after a few major storms and tsunamis, people have begun to implement more natural shorelines and nature-based defense systems because of the failure of traditional erosion protection, such as hardened shorelines (Arkema, Griffin, Guerry, Maldonado, Silver, and Suckale, 2017). Four examples of coastal defenses that are being used near communities …show more content…
One major benefit to this type of protection is that natural shorelines provide many benefits to the environment even when there is not a storm, including habitats for animals such as fish and crustaceans. Some more advantages to this type of shorelines is enhancing water quality, as vegetation can filter the runoff, carbon sequestration, and use for recreation as it is safer for most people than climbing on a seawall or riprap revetment. Over the years, a natural shoreline will get stronger and more effective unlike built shorelines that stay the same or might even degrade over time. Something that can make natural shorelines very cost-effective is that they have the ability to repair naturally after a storm, whereas a built shoreline might need man made intervention after damage from a storm. Weaknesses of natural shorelines are that they take time to implement and grow if they are not already established, they require a large amount of space to implement which may not be possible in some areas, and that acquiring permits for natural shorelines may be difficult. But it is clear that the benefits to the environment outweigh the weaknesses of this infrastructure (Bamford, Sutton-Grier, and Wowk, …show more content…
In 16 of the 20 coastal counties, a dual-method survey was completed and participants were involved by using a modified Dillman method, which involved an initial mailing to invite them to complete the survey online, and then a reminder letter later on to follow up. Visual assessments were also done to assess damage from hurricane Irene and hurricane Arthur, in North Carolina’s outer banks. The shorelines were divided into six categories to be evaluated. The results were that bulkheads were the most damaged structures, more than any others. Residents’ with bulkheads on their properties were also exposed to more property damage and maintenance costs linked with hurricane damage, and also without hurricane damage. Natural shoreline caused the residents’ less yearly maintenance costs. Property owners also classified natural planting and sills more favorable than just sills for productiveness and longevity (Fodrie, Gittman, Morton, Neylan, Peterson, Scyphers and Smith,
However, if any action is taken to defend the coastline, if you hinder in nature's course of beach erosion, there will always be after effects resulting from unnatural intrusion. This proves that any sea defence could prove a problem especially with the land owned by Nation Trust. Nevertheless if you could prove to the owners of the land to the extent of which erosion is taken place and show them how much LSD is affecting the area, action may well become a better option.
Investigating the Geographical Processes that are Affecting the Physical and Built Coastal Environment There are three geographical processes that are affecting the physical and built coastal environment, they are; erosion, deposition, and transportation. Erosion is the group of natural processes, including weathering, dissolution, abrasion, corrosion, and transportation, by which material is worn away from the earth’s surface, this is mainly caused by wind, running water, and waves breaking on the coast. Deposition is the depositing something or the laying down of matter by a natural process. Transportation is when sand is moved along the coast by long shore drift. At North Cronulla beach erosion is evident.
New Orleans, Louisiana lies at the second lowest elevation among major cities in the United States. It is a city surrounded by water, making it almost like an island. To counter this dangerous combination of the low elevation along with the lakes, rivers and swamps surrounding it, the Army Corps of Engineers built a series of levees around the city to foster its protection. It is these very same levees however that might doom the city should a Category 3 hurricane ever hit. Our statistical analyses examined the current belief that there is a 39% probability that New Orleans will be hit by a major hurricane and based on the resulting Z-score, rejected that belief. We did find however that the probability, while not 39%, was still in the 30th percentile range, which should still be a major cause for concern among the leaders and residences of the city of New Orleans.
There are many different types of coasts that exist throughout the United States. The south shore of Long Island has a unique types of coast known as a barrier beach. Barrier beaches are long narrow land forms that are composed of sand and other lose sediments. These sediments are brought together by the actions of waves, currents and storm surges. Barrier beaches are subject to constant changes by the same forces. Sand is constantly eroded in one area an deposited in another. Barrier coasts are important for a number of reasons; they protect the mainland of Long Island from the open ocean and flooding during storms, for recreational use and the unique ecosystems which exist on barrier beaches.
... consider some ideas of what can be done to further enhance the management of the coastal issue. Using the research action plan, I aim to acquire a sophisticated understanding of longshore drift, coastal management and implementations of coastal issues, through the research action plan. Most importantly, I will include various diagrams explaining how the process of longshore drift occurs and what implementations it has on coastal environments, accompanied by an explanation of how the issue is being managed, a detailed outline of the geographical processes involved and a discussion of the impacts of the issue and why it is important.
In the late summer of 2005, a terrible tragedy occurred that changed the lives of many in the south-east region of the United States. A Category 3, named storm, named Hurricane Katrina, hit the Gulf Coast on the 29th of August and led to the death of 1,836 and millions of dollars’ worth of damage (Waple 2005). The majority of the damage occurred in New Orleans, Louisiana. Waple writes in her article that winds “gusted over 100 mph in New Orleans, just west of the eye” (Waple 2005). Not only was the majority of the damage due to the direct catastrophes of the storm but also city’s levees could no longer hold thus breaking and releasing great masses of water. Approximately, 80% of the city was submerged at sea level. Despite the vast amount of damage and danger all throughout the city, officials claimed that there was work being done to restore the city of New Orleans as a whole but many parts, and even the people, of the city were overlooked while areas of the city with higher economic value, and more tourist traffic, were prioritized along with those individuals.
This is a result from the new levee system. This system prevents the natural ways of sediment re-depositing along the riverbank and wetlands. The levees lead the sediment to deposit off the continental shelf in the Gulf of Mexico. (15) This adds to the loss of wetlands along the coast. Wetlands are important to the economy in more than one way. They serve as homes for fish which fishermen catch then sell and they protect the mainland from getting the full effect of storm surge during a hurricane. “Every 2.7 miles of wetlands absorbs one foot of storm surge” (1.2). Without wetlands and barrier islands working as a barrier, the mainland could experience even more damage during
Thirty-five percent was paid by the state, leaving the Harvey Cedars to pay only 1 percent. With this being noted, John also described some of the major terms and conditions. An easement form had to be signed by the beachfront owners. The beach also had to be accessible to the public. Most importantly, the beach must conform to federal guidelines governing water quality, beach grooming and placement of Porta Potties. John also mentioned an example where legal actions against the government, by the residents like the “Karan’s” were taken. This family had a beachline property worth $1.9 million dollars. This same property’s value dropped to $500,000 post construction of the beach with the dunes, blocking the beach view. John described the real estate subject relating to properties and the difference in price based on beach
The category 3 storm changed the lives of the residence who lived there forever. The storm in combination with the fault of the man-made flood protection walls (levee’s) resulted in the death of at least 1,300 people (1). With nearly half the victims over the age of 74, deaths were caused by; drowning, injury/ trauma and heart conditions (2). Hurricane Katrina was one of the most costliest storms to land on American soil, costing around US$135 billion in damages (3). Although the number of deaths caused by Hurricane Katrina are not as high as other natural disasters, Katrina displaced a massive amount of people from their homes, around 85% of the population were displaced directly after the storm hit (6). Being one of the most devastating natural disasters to hit the United States, Hurricane Katrina impacted not only the residence of New Orleans by also many of the surrounding
On August 29, 2005, the third strongest and biggest hurricane ever recorded in American history hit the Gulf Coast at eight o’clock a.m. The interaction between a tropical depression and a tropical wave created a tropical storm later referred to as Hurricane Katrina (FAQS, 2013). Forming over the Bahamas, Hurricane Katrina gradually strengthened as it moved closer and closer to the Gulf of Mexico. Recorded on August 28th, 2005, Katrina jumped from a category three storm to a category five storm with maximum sustained winds up to 160 miles per hour. Although other hurricanes, such as Hurricane Rita and Hurricane Wilma, exceeded Katrina, this dominant storm was classified as the fourth most intense hurricane based its pressure capacity. Once Hurricane Katrina hit land, it was pronounced as a category four storm moving slowly. While people thought that the slow speed of this storm prevented trauma, records show that Katrina did more damage than any fast-moving storm could have ever achieved (Solanki, 2013). Katrina produced abundant debris. The debris was in such large quantity that if it was stacked together on a football field, the rubble would reach the elevation of ten and a half miles. The size of Katrina also caused 90,000 square miles to be affected. Once proclaimed a category three storm, Hurricane Katrina slowed to the speed of 155 miles per hour. At this point in time, Katrina proved to be the sixth most prevailing hurricane traced in history. (Solanki, 2013). Several different aspects of life were impacted by Hurricane Katrina such as availability of gasoline, economic issues, and the ability to have an adequate supply of drinking water (Solanki, 2013). Hurricane Katrina was a large storm ...
Over the past 100 years the Louisiana coastline has suffered greatly from biotic, abiotic, and anthropogenic factors. The abiotic factors include things such as hurricanes or overnutrition that influence the surrounding biota. The biotic factors that contribute to coastal erosion are things like the immigration invasive species and the emigration or extinction of local flora and fauna that help preserve the wetlands. Additionally, there are anthropogenic factors such as pollution that can have strong negative influences on the abiotic and biotic factors of the wetlands. Each one of these factors cause ecological disturbances to the wetlands at a frequency and intensity that is unmanageable for the local flora and fauna. There are currently certain measures that are being taken into consideration to slow or stop the erosion of the Louisiana coastline.
On August 29, 2005 Hurricane Katrina forced its way into New Orleans, Louisiana with winds of more than 140 mph. This storm was a strong category three when it hit New Orleans. Hurricane Katrina destroyed homes, businesses, and factories from the high winds and flooding. The devastation that the city suffered was terrible; many people lost family members young and old and also their most prized possessions. Most of all it displaced families and caused an abundance of damage to properties. Due to the costly destruction that the city of New Orleans faced after Katrina, they must now find a way to alleviate the blighted properties from their environment and also face the challenges.
Some of the damage done by Hurricane Katrina could have potentially been avoided if protection systems were installed to the proper extents. In Louisiana, “some parts of the metro area continue to lack hurricane protection built to federal standards” (Webster). Had the greater Louisiana area been better protected, it is very likely that more people would have survived and the total cost of the storm been less. Even in areas where levees...
Globally coastal wetlands are disappearing at an alarming rate, the problem is most of society does not realize the value of these precious wetlands. Coastal wetlands provide an important role in the coastal ecosystem. “Coastal wetlands provide critical services such as absorbing energy from coastal storms, preserving shorelines, protecting human populations and infrastructure, supporting commercial seafood harvests, absorbing pollutants and serving as critical habitat for migratory bird populations”(Anonymous, 2011). Coastal wetlands are an economical asset as well as an environmental one.
In addition, the halt in the land-building process allows erosion to eat up parts of the Louisiana coastline. This alarmingly quick decrease in coastal land is allowing coastal storms to tear up even larger pieces of land and move even closer to major cities such as New Orleans. As a result of human actions, the cities are more endangered than ever before. A similar situation is present in “ Los Angeles Against the Mountains”. Debris basins are the primary defense against destruction by the flows of rock.