Coastal Hazards Assessment in Cold Regions

A special issue of Journal of Marine Science and Engineering (ISSN 2077-1312). This special issue belongs to the section "Coastal Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 September 2021) | Viewed by 10837

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Coastal Geoscience Chair, Centre for Northern Studies, Québec Océan, University of Quebec in Rimouski, 300 Allée des Ursulines, Rimouski, QC G5L3A1, Canada
Interests: coastal geoscience; coastal risks; erosion processes; vulnerability; climate changes; remote sensing; sea-level; ice foot dynamics

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Guest Editor
Geological Survey of Canada - Atlantic, Natural Resources Canada, 1 Challenger Dr, Dartmouth, NS B2Y 4A2, Canada
Interests: natural hazards; risk mapping; early warning systems; coastal geomorphology; wave runup; coastal flooding; remote sensing; video monitoring; sea ice

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Studies on coastal hazards and risks around the world are generally focused on systems not affected by sea ice or other cryogenic processes. Under a changing climate where temperate to high-latitude seas suffer from sea ice and ice foot shrinking, protection against wave energy is weakened and higher risk can be expected during storms. In cold regions, the effects of coastal permafrost thawing, frost processes, storm surge, sea level rise, tsunamis, sea ice, and ice foot needs to be considered in coastal hazards assessments for effective risk reduction and adaptation strategies. In this Special Issue entitled “Coastal Hazards Assessment in Cold Regions” we invite authors to submit papers that address all hazards on coasts seasonally affected by sea ice dynamics, frost action, and other processes in the cryosphere. We also welcome papers focused on risk assessment for coastal communities and infrastructures, as well as adaptation strategies to reduce their vulnerability to coastal hazards in cold regions.

Prof. Dr. Pascal Bernatchez
Dr. David Didier
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • vulnerability and risk
  • climate change
  • sea ice and ice foot
  • frost processes
  • storm surge
  • waves
  • cryosphere
  • tsunamis
  • flood and erosion
  • permafrost
  • mapping
  • mitigation
  • adaptation

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

32 pages, 33143 KiB  
Article
Long-Term Evolution and Monitoring at High Temporal Resolution of a Rapidly Retreating Cliff in a Cold Temperate Climate Affected by Cryogenic Processes, North Shore of the St. Lawrence Gulf, Quebec (Canada)
by Pascal Bernatchez, Geneviève Boucher-Brossard, Maude Corriveau, Charles Caulet and Robert L. Barnett
J. Mar. Sci. Eng. 2021, 9(12), 1418; https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse9121418 - 12 Dec 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3324
Abstract
This article focuses on the quantification of retreat rates, geomorphological processes, and hydroclimatic and environmental drivers responsible for the erosion of an unconsolidated fine-sediment cliff along the north shore of the Gulf of St. Lawrence (Quebec, Canada). Annual monitoring using field markers over [...] Read more.
This article focuses on the quantification of retreat rates, geomorphological processes, and hydroclimatic and environmental drivers responsible for the erosion of an unconsolidated fine-sediment cliff along the north shore of the Gulf of St. Lawrence (Quebec, Canada). Annual monitoring using field markers over a period of twenty years, coupled with photo interpretation and historical archive analysis, indicates an average annual erosion rate of 2.2 m per year between 1948 and 2017. An acceleration in retreat occurred during the last 70 years, leading to a maximum between 1997 and 2017 (3.4 m per year) and 2000–2020 (3.3 m per year). Daily observations based on six monitoring cameras installed along the cliff between 2008 and 2012 allowed the identification of mechanisms and geomorphological processes responsible for cliff retreat. Data analysis reveals seasonal activity peaks during winter and spring, which account for 75% of total erosional events. On an annual basis, cryogenic processes represent 68% of the erosion events observed and subaerial and hydrogeological processes account for 73%. Small-scale processes, such as gelifraction, solifluction, suffosion, debris collapse, and thermoabrasion, as well as mass movement events, such as slides and mudflows, induced rapid cliff retreat. Lithostratigraphy and cliff height exert an important control on erosion rates and retreat modes, which are described by three main drivers (hydrogeologic, cryogenic, and hydrodynamic processes). Critical conditions promoting high erosion rates include the absence of an ice-foot in winter, the absence of snow cover on the cliff face allowing unrestricted solar radiation, the repetition of winter warm spells, snow melting and sediment thawing, and high rainfall conditions (>30 mm or SPI > 2). The relationships between hydroclimatic forcing and retreat rates are difficult to establish without taking into account the quantification of the geomorphological processes involved. The absence of quantitative data on the relative contribution of geomorphological processes can constitute a major obstacle in modeling the retreat of cliffs with regard to climate change. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Coastal Hazards Assessment in Cold Regions)
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20 pages, 5963 KiB  
Article
Numerical Analysis of Storm Surges on Canada’s Western Arctic Coastline
by Joseph Kim, Enda Murphy, Ioan Nistor, Sean Ferguson and Mitchel Provan
J. Mar. Sci. Eng. 2021, 9(3), 326; https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse9030326 - 16 Mar 2021
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 4069
Abstract
A numerical study was conducted to characterize the probability and intensity of storm surge hazards in Canada’s western Arctic. The utility of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts Reanalysis 5th Generation (ERA5) dataset to force numerical simulations of storm surges was explored. [...] Read more.
A numerical study was conducted to characterize the probability and intensity of storm surge hazards in Canada’s western Arctic. The utility of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts Reanalysis 5th Generation (ERA5) dataset to force numerical simulations of storm surges was explored. Fifty historical storm surge events that were captured on a tide gauge near Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories, were simulated using a two-dimensional (depth-averaged) hydrodynamic model accounting for the influence of sea ice on air-sea momentum transfer. The extent of sea ice and the duration of the ice season has been reducing in the Arctic region, which may contribute to increasing risk from storm surge-driven hazards. Comparisons between winter storm events under present-day ice concentrations and future open-water scenarios revealed that the decline in ice cover has potential to result in storm surges that are up to three times higher. The numerical model was also used to hindcast a significant surge event that was not recorded by the tide gauge, but for which driftwood lines along the coast provided insights to the high-water marks. Compared to measurements at proximate meteorological stations, the ERA5 reanalysis dataset provided reasonable estimates of atmospheric pressure but did not accurately capture peak wind speeds during storm surge events. By adjusting the wind drag coefficients to compensate, reasonably accurate predictions of storm surges were attained for most of the simulated events. The extreme value probability distributions (i.e., return periods and values) of the storm surges were significantly altered when events absent from the tide gauge record were included in the frequency analysis, demonstrating the value of non-conventional data sources, such as driftwood line surveys, in supporting coastal hazard assessments in remote regions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Coastal Hazards Assessment in Cold Regions)
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20 pages, 8576 KiB  
Article
A Probabilistic Model of Coastal Bluff-Top Erosion in High Latitudes Due to Thermoabrasion: A Case Study from Baydaratskaya Bay in the Kara Sea
by Mohammad Akhsanul Islam, Raed Lubbad and Mohammad Saud Afzal
J. Mar. Sci. Eng. 2020, 8(3), 169; https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse8030169 - 3 Mar 2020
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2618
Abstract
Arctic coastal erosion demands more attention as the global climate continues to change. Unlike those along low-latitude and mid-latitude, sediments along Arctic coastlines are often frozen, even during summer. Thermal and mechanical factors must be considered together when analysing Arctic coastal erosion. Two [...] Read more.
Arctic coastal erosion demands more attention as the global climate continues to change. Unlike those along low-latitude and mid-latitude, sediments along Arctic coastlines are often frozen, even during summer. Thermal and mechanical factors must be considered together when analysing Arctic coastal erosion. Two major erosion mechanisms in the Arctic have been identified: thermodenudation and thermoabrasion. Field observations of Arctic coastal erosion are available in Baydaratskaya Bay in the Kara Sea. The objective of this study is to develop a probabilistic model of thermoabrasion to simulate the measured coastal erosion at two sites where observations suggest thermoabrasion is dominant. The model simulates two time periods: (a) the summer of 2013 (2012–2013) and (b) the summer of 2017 (2016–2017). A probabilistic analysis is performed to quantify the uncertainties in the model results. The input parameters are assumed to follow normal and lognormal distributions with a 10% coefficient of variation. Monte Carlo simulation is applied to determine the erosion rates for the two different cases. The simulation results agree reasonably well with the field observations. In addition, a sensitivity analysis is performed, revealing a very high sensitivity of the model to sea-level changes. The model indicates that the relation between sea-level rise and thermoabrasional erosion is exponential. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Coastal Hazards Assessment in Cold Regions)
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