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- Title
Assessment of island beach erosion due to sea level rise: The case of the Aegean Archipelago (Eastern Mediterranean).
- Authors
Monioudi, Isavela N.; Velegrakis, Adonis F.; Chatzipavlis, Antonis E.; Rigos, Anastasios; Karambas, Theophanis; Vousdoukas, Michalis I.; Hasiotis, Thomas; Koukourouvli, Nikoletta; Peduzzi, Pascal; Manoutsoglou, Eva; Poulos, Serafim E.; Collins, Michael B.
- Abstract
The present contribution constitutes the first comprehensive attempt to (a) record the spatial characteristics of the beaches of the Aegean Archipelago (Greece), a critical resource for both the local and national economy; and (b) provide a rapid assessment of the impacts of the long-term and episodic sea level rise (SLR), under different scenarios. Spatial information and other attributes (e.g. presence of coastal protection works and backshore development) of the beaches of the 58 largest islands of the Archipelago were obtained on the basis of remote-sensed images available in the web. Ranges of SLR-induced beach retreats under different morphological, sedimentological and hydrodynamic forcing and SLR scenarios were estimated, using suitable ensembles of cross-shore (1-D) morphodynamic models. These ranges, combined with empirically-derived estimations of wave run up-induced flooding, were then compared with the recorded maximum beach widths, to provide ranges of retreat/erosion and flooding at the Archipelago scale. The spatial information shows that the Aegean beaches may be particularly vulnerable to mean (MSLR) and episodic SLRs due to: (i) their narrow widths (about 59% of the beaches have maximum widths <20m); (ii) their limited terrestrial sediment supply; (iii) the substantial coastal development and (iv) the limited existing coastal protection. Modeling results indeed project severe impacts under mean and episodic SLRs, which by 2100 could be devastating. For example, under MSLR of 0.5m (RCP4.5), a storm-induced sea level rise of 0.6m is projected to result in complete erosion of between 31 and 88% of all beaches (29-87% of beaches currently fronting coastal infrastructure and assets), at least temporarily. It appears that, in addition to the significant effort and financial resources required to protect/maintain the critical economic resource of the Aegean Archipelago, appropriate coastal "set-back zone" policies should be adopted and implemented.
- Subjects
ABSOLUTE sea level change; ARCHIPELAGOES
- Publication
Natural Hazards & Earth System Sciences Discussions, 2016, p1
- ISSN
2195-9269
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.5194/nhess-2016-336