Aeolian transport rates across raked and unraked beaches on a developed coast

Wind characteristics and aeolian transport were measured on a naturally evolving beach and dune and a nearby site where the beach is raked and sand‐trapping fences are deployed. The beaches were composed of moderately well sorted to very well sorted fine to medium sand. The backshore at the raked site was wider and the foredune was more densely vegetated and about 1 m higher than at the unraked site. Wind speeds were monitored using anemometers placed at 1 m elevation and sand transport was monitored using vertical traps during oblique onshore, alongshore and offshore winds occurring in March and April 2009. Inundation of the low backshore through isolated swash channels prevented formation of a continuously decreasing cross‐shore moisture gradient. The surface of the berm crest was dryer than the backshore, making the berm crest the greatest source of offshore losses during offshore winds. The lack of storm wrack on the raked beach reduced the potential for sediment accumulation seaward of the dune crest during onshore winds, and the higher dune crest reduced wind speeds and sediment transport from the dune to the backshore during offshore winds. Accretion at wrack seaward of the dune toe on the unraked beach resulted in a wider dune field and higher, narrower backshore. Although fresh wrack is an effective local trap for aeolian transport, wrack that becomes buried appears to have little effect as a barrier and can supply dry sand for subsequent transport. Aeolian transport rates were greater on the narrower but dryer backshore of the unraked site. Vegetation growth may be necessary to trap sand within zones of buried wrack in order to allow new incipient foredunes to evolve. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Offshore aeolian sediment transport across a human‐modified foredune

Concepts derived from previous studies of offshore winds on natural dunes are evaluated on a dune maintained for shore protection during three offshore wind events. The potential for offshore winds to form a lee‐side eddy on the backshore or transfer sediment from the dune and berm crest to the water are evaluated, as are differences in wind speed and sediment transport on the dune crest, berm crest and a pedestrian access gap. The dune is 18–20 m wide near the base and has a crest 4.5 m above backshore elevation. Two sand‐trapping fences facilitate accretion. Data were obtained from wind vanes on the crest and lee of the dune and anemometers and sand traps placed across the dune, on the beach berm crest and in the access gap. Mean wind direction above the dune crest varied from 11 to 3 deg from shore normal. No persistent recirculation eddy occurred on the 12 deg seaward slope. Wind speed on the berm crest was 85–89% of speed at the dune crest, but rates of sediment transport were 2.27 times greater during the strongest winds, indicating that a wide beach overcomes the transport limitation of a dune barrier. Limited transport on the seaward dune ramp indicates that losses to the water are mostly from the backshore, not the dune. The seaward slope gains sand from the landward slope and dune crest. Sand fences causing accretion on the dune ramp during onshore winds lower the seaward slope and reduce the likelihood of detached flows during offshore winds. Transport rates are higher in access gaps than on the dune crest despite lower wind speeds because of flatter slopes and absence of vegetation. Transport rates across dunes and through gaps can be reduced using vegetation and raised walkover structures. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

High‐frequency sediment transport responses on a vegetated foredune

Wind flow and sand transport intensity were measured on the seaward slope of a vegetated foredune during a 16 h storm using an array of sonic anemometers and Wenglor laser particle counters. The foredune had a compound seaward slope with a wave‐cut scarp about 0.5 m high separating the upper vegetated portion from the lower dune ramp, which was bare of vegetation. Wind direction veered from obliquely offshore at the start of the event to obliquely onshore during the storm peak and finally to directly onshore during the final 2 h as wind speed dropped to below threshold. Sand transport was initially inhibited by a brief period of rain at the start of the event but as the surface dried and wind speed increased sand transport was initiated over the entire seaward slope. Transport intensity was quite variable both temporally and spatially on the upper slope as a result of fluctuating wind speed and direction, but overall magnitudes were similar over the whole length. Ten‐minute average transport intensity correlates strongly with mean wind speed measured at the dune crest, and there is also strong correlation between instantaneous wind speed and transport intensity measured at the same locations when the data are smoothed with a 10 s running mean. Transport on the beach for onshore winds is decoupled from that on the seaward slope above the small scarp when the wind angle is highly oblique, but for wind angles <45° from shore perpendicular some sand is transported onto the lower slope. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Short‐term intertidal bar mobility on a ridge‐and‐runnel beach,Merlimont, northern France

Digital elevation models and topographic pro?les of a beach with intertidal bar and trough (ridge‐and‐runnel) morphology in Merlimont, northern France, were analysed in order to assess patterns of cross‐shore and longshore intertidal bar mobility. The beach exhibited a pronounced dual bar–trough system that showed cross‐shore stationarity. The bars and troughs were, however, characterized by signi?cant longshore advection of sand under the in?uence of suspension by waves and transport by strong tide‐ and wind‐driven longshore currents. Pro?le changes were due in part to the longshore migration of medium‐sized bedforms. The potential for cross‐shore bar migration appears to be mitigated by the large size of the two bars relative to incident wave energy, which is modulated by high vertical tidal excursion rates on this beach due to the large tidal range (mean spring tidal range = 8·3 m). Cross‐shore bar migration is also probably hindered by the well‐entrenched troughs which are maintained by channelled high‐energy intertidal ?ows generated by swash bores and by tidal discharge and drainage. The longshore migration of intertidal bars affecting Merlimont beach is embedded in a regional coastal sand transport pathway involving tidal and wind‐forced northward residual ?ows affecting the rectilinear northern French coast in the eastern English Channel. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Aeolian sediment transport on a recovering storm‐eroded foredune with sand fences

Studies of sediment transport on developed coasts provide perspective on how human adjustments alter natural processes. Deployment of sand‐trapping fences is a common adjustment that changes the characteristics of the dune ramp and its role in linking sediment transfers from the backshore to the foredune. Fence effects were evaluated in the field using anemometer arrays and vertical sediment traps placed across a beach and dune at Seaside Park, New Jersey, USA during onshore and longshore winds. The foredune is 18 m wide and 4.5 m above the backshore. The mean speed of onshore winds at 0.5 m elevation decreased by 17% from the berm crest to the upper ramp and 36% in the lee of a fence there. Sediment transport during mean wind speeds up to 8.0 m s^?1 at 0.5 m elevation was < 0.06 kg m^?1 h^?1 on the berm crest and backshore where fetch distances were < 45 m and surface sediment was relatively coarse (0.74–0.85 mm) but increased to 5.63 kg m^?1 h^?1 on the upper ramp aided by the longer fetch distances (up to 82 m) and finer grain size of the source sediment there (0.52 mm). Sediment transport along the berm crest and backshore during longshore winds, where fetch distances were > 200 m, was up to 58.69 kg m^?1 h^?1, about three orders of magnitude greater than during the onshore winds. Fences can displace the toe of the ramp farther seaward than would occur under natural conditions. They can create a gentler slope and change the shape of the ramp to a more convex form. A fence on the ramp can cut off a portion of sediment supply to the upper slope. Decisions about fence placement thus should consider these morphologic changes in addition to the effects on dune volume. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Aeolian sediment transport and morphologic change on a managed and an unmanaged foredune

Sediment transport and short‐term morphologic change were evaluated at a site where sand fences are deployed and the beach is raked (Managed Site) and a site where these human adjustments are not practiced (Unmanaged Site). Data were gathered across the seaward portion of a low foredune when winds blew nearly shore‐normal at mean speeds 8.9 to 9.3 m s^‐1. Data from traps revealed sediment transport rates at unvegetated portions of the foredune crest (40.2 to 43.5 kg m^‐1 h^‐1) were greater than on the backshore (4.9 to 11.2 kg m^‐1 h^‐1) due to onshore decreases in surface moisture and speed‐up of the wind passing over the foredune. Data from erosion pins indicate sediment input to the dune was 1.48 m³ m^‐1 alongshore at the Managed Site and 1.25 m³ m^‐1 at the Unmanaged Site. The Unmanaged Site had deposition at the dune toe, erosion at mid‐slope, and deposition at the crest. Deposition occurred at mid‐slope on the Managed Site near a partially buried (0.58 m high) fence with a porosity of about 65%. Deposition at partially buried wrack on the upper backshore and dune toe at the Unmanaged Site was about twice as great as deposition in this zone at the Managed Site. Results indicate that: (1) the seaward slope of the foredune can be a more important source of sand to the lee of the crest than the beach; (2) wrack near the toe can decrease transport into the foredune; (3) a scour zone can occur on the foredune slope above the wrack line; (4) a fence placed in this location can promote deposition and offset scour, but fences can restrict delivery of sediment farther inland. Evaluation of alternative configurations of fences and strategies for managing wrack is required to better determine the ways that humans modify foredunes. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Thresholds for morphological changes on an exposed sandy beach as a function of wave height

A sandy beach in the south of Portugal (Faro beach, Ria Formosa) was surveyed from the dune crest seaward to 15 m depth 20 times over a period of 26 months. Wave time‐series between surveys were analysed to obtain relationships between wave height and vertical profile variations and to define wave thresholds for important morphological changes. Results show that the active zone of the profile lies between 5 m above and 10·4 m below mean sea level, and that there are clear cross‐shore differences in the vertical variability of the profile. Based on the pattern of vertical variability, the profile was divided into four cross‐shore sectors: A (berm), 20–80 m from the profile origin; B (sub‐tidal terrace), 80–170 m; C (long‐shore bar), 170–360 m; and D, 360–700 m. The relationship between the modulus of the maximum vertical change in each sector and the 99th percentile of significant wave height between surveys was always significant. Calculated thresholds for significant wave height generating important morphological changes were 2·3 m in sector A, 3·2 m in sectors B and C, and 4·1 m in sector D. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Air flow over foredunes and implications for sand transport

More than 4000 hourly wind profiles measured on three topographically different foredunes are analysed and discussed. Wind flow over the foredunes is studied by means of the relative wind speed: the ratio between wind speed at a certain location and the reference wind speed at the same height. Relative wind speeds appear to be independent of general wind speed but dependent on wind direction. For perpendicular onshore winds the flow over the foredune is accelerated due to topographic changes and decelerated due to changes in surface roughness. Accelerations dominate over decelerations on the seaward slope. The pattern of acceleration and deceleration in relation to wind direction is more or less comparable for different foredunes, but the magnitudes differ. An increase in foredune height from 6 to 10m leads to an increase in speed-up near the top of the seaward slope from 110 to 150 per cent during onshore wind, but further increase of foredune height from 10 to 23m appears to have little effect, due to increased roughness and deflection of flow. Topography also influences the direction of the flow. Between beach and top, the flow deflects in the direction of the normal during onshore winds. During offshore winds the flow is deflected to the parallel. Near the dunefoot, deflection is always in the direction of the parallel, and increases with steeper topography. The maximum deflection near the dunefoot was 90°, over a 23 m high dune, observed during offshore winds. Patterns of erosion and sedimentation resulting from winds from different directions can be explained by the observed accelerations and decelerations. Owing to speed-up on the seaward front of the foredune, sand transport capacity of the wind increases, which results in erosion if vegetation is absent. During strong onshore wind, sand is lifted near the dunefoot and moves over the foredune in suspension. During weaker winds, vertical wind velocities do not exceed fall velocities of the sand grains, and most of the sand is deposited near the dunefoot.     

Modelling aeolian sand transport and morphological development in two beach nourishment areas

The aeolian sand transport model SAFE and the air flow model HILL were applied to evaluate cross‐shore changes at two nourished beaches and adjacent dunes and to identify the response of aeolian sand transport and morphology to several nourishment design parameters and fill characteristics. The main input of the model consisted of data on the sediment, tide and meteorological conditions, and of half‐yearly measured characteristics of topography, vegetation and sand fences. The cross‐shore profiles generated by SAFE–HILL were compared to measured cross‐shore profiles. The patterns of erosion and deposition, and the morphological development corresponded. In general, the rates of aeolian sand transport were overestimated. The impact of parameters that are related to beach nourishment (namely grain size, adaptation length and beach topography) on profile development was evaluated. Grain size affected the aeolian sand transport rate to the foredunes, and therefore the morphology. Adaptation length, which is a measure of the distance over which sediment transport adapts to a new equilibrium condition, affected the topography of the beach in particular. The topography of a beach nourishment had limited impact on both aeolian sand transport rate and morphology. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Modelling the relative dominance of wave erosion and weathering processes in shore platform development in micro‐ to mega‐tidal settings

In this paper we use a numerical model to explore the relative dominance of two main processes in shore platform development: wave erosion; weathering due to wetting and drying. The modelling approach differs from previous work in several aspects, including: the way that it accounts for weathering arising from gradual surficial intertidal rock degradation; subtidal profile shape development; and the consideration of a broad erosion parameter space in which, at either end of the erosion spectrum, shore platform profiles are produced by waves or weathering alone. Results show that in micro‐tidal settings, wave erosion dominates the evolution of (i) shore platforms that become largely subtidal and (ii) sub‐horizontal shore platforms that have a receding seaward edge. Weathering processes dominate the evolution of sub‐horizontal shore platforms with a stable seaward edge. In contrast, sloping shore platforms in mega‐tidal settings are produced across the full range of the process‐dominance spectrum depending on the how the erosional efficacy of wave erosion and weathering are parameterized. Morphological feedbacks control the process‐dominance. In small tidal environments wave processes are strongly controlled by the presence/absence of an abrupt seaward edge, but this influence is much smaller in large tidal environments due to larger water depths particularly at high tides. In large tidal environments, similar shore platform profile geometries can be produced by either wave‐dominant or weathering‐dominant process regimes. Equifinality in shore platform development has been noted in other studies, but mainly in the context of smaller‐scale (centimetre to metre) erosion features. Here we draw attention to geomorphic equifinality at the scale of the shore platform itself. Progress requires a greater understanding of the actual mechanics of the process regimes operating on shore platforms. However, this paper makes a substantial contribution to the debate by identifying the physical conditions that allow clear statements about process dominance. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The influence of nearshore sand bank dynamics on shoreline evolution in a macrotidal coastal environment,Calais, northern France

Analyses of shoreline and bathymetry change near Calais, northern coast of France, showed that shoreline evolution during the 20th century was strongly related with shoreface and nearshore bathymetry variations. Coastal erosion generally corresponds to areas of nearshore seabed lowering while shoreline progradation is essentially associated with areas of seafloor aggradation, notably east of Calais where an extensive sand flat experienced seaward shoreline displacement up to more than 300 m between 1949 and 2000. Mapping of bathymetry changes since 1911 revealed that significant variation in nearshore morphology was caused by the onshore and alongshore migration of a prominent tidal sand bank that eventually welded to the shore. Comparison of bathymetry data showed that the volume of the bank increased by about 10×10⁷ m³ during the 20th century, indicating that the bank was acting as a sediment sink for some of the sand transiting alongshore in the coastal zone. Several lines of evidence show that the bank also represented a major sediment source for the prograding tidal flat, supplying significant amounts of sand to the accreting upper beach. Simulation of wave propagation using the SWAN wave model (Booij et al., 1999) suggests that the onshore movement of the sand bank resulted in a decrease of wave energy in the nearshore zone, leading to more dissipative conditions. Such conditions would have increased nearshore sediment supply, favoring aeolian dune development on the upper beach and shoreline progradation. Our results suggest that the onshore migration of nearshore sand banks may represent one of the most important, and possibly the primary mechanism responsible for supplying marine sand to beaches and coastal dunes in this macrotidal coastal environment.     

A numerical model for shore-normal sediment size variation on a macrotidal beach

This paper describes a computer simulation model which is designed to predict the selective shore-normal sorting of grain sizes in the nearshore environment. The model simulates wave shoaling, wave height attenuation due to frictional losses and breaking, using linear theory up to the break point and a breaker decay model in the surf zone. Peak horizontal orbital velocities at the bed are calculated from Stokes second-order wave theory. The peak onshore and offshore velocities are used with the threshold expression of Komar and Miller (1975) to generate a spatial pattern of size variation of threshold grain diameter along a profile normal to the shore from deep water to the swash zone. The predicted grain size is used in an hydraulic interpretation of grain size distribution on the intertidal profile, based on the hydrodynamic variations over a tidal cycle on a macrotidal beach. The model is successful in predicting the broad pattern of increasing grain size in the onshore direction which has been observed in nature. Comparisons between measured and predicted grain size distributions indicate that the predictions of the model are better than those of previous models, but the model is more successful at predicting sediment size distributions than at predicting mean sizes on a beach profile.     

Wave transformation across a macrotidal shore platform under low to moderate energy conditions

We investigate how waves are transformed across a shore platform as this is a central question in rock coast geomorphology. We present results from deployment of three pressure transducers over four days, across a sloping, wide (~200 m) cliff‐backed shore platform in a macrotidal setting, in South Wales, United Kingdom. Cross‐shore variations in wave heights were evident under the predominantly low to moderate (significant wave height < 1.4 m) energy conditions measured. At the outer transducer 50 m from the seaward edge of the platform (163 m from the cliff) high tide water depths were 8+ m meaning that waves crossed the shore platform without breaking. At the mid‐platform position water depth was 5 m. Water depth at the inner transducer (6 m from the cliff platform junction) at high tide was 1.4 m. This shallow water depth forced wave breaking, thereby limiting wave heights on the inner platform. Maximum wave height at the middle and inner transducers were 2.41 and 2.39 m, respectively, and significant wave height 1.35 m and 1.34 m, respectively. Inner platform high tide wave heights were generally larger where energy was up to 335% greater than near the seaward edge where waves were smaller. Infragravity energy was less than 13% of the total energy spectra with energy in the swell, wind and capillary frequencies accounting for 87% of the total energy. Wave transformation is thus spatially variable and is strongly modulated by platform elevation and the tidal range. While shore platforms in microtidal environments have been shown to be highly dissipative, in this macro‐tidal setting up to 90% of the offshore wave energy reached the landward cliff at high tide, so that the shore platform cliff is much more reflective. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Contrasting geomorphological storm response from two adjacent shorefaces

Shorefaces play a critical role in cross‐shore sediment transport between the beach and inner shelf, particularly during storm conditions. A comparison and examination of storm‐driven sedimentary changes on two adjacent shorefaces in Northern Ireland, located only 5 km apart, revealed significantly different geomorphological responses. The steeper shoreface at West Strand responded with extensive sediment deposition across almost the entire shoreface, in contrast with the more dissipative and quasi‐linear shoreface at Portstewart, which mostly showed nearshore bar changes. Results from the two sites, which have similar wave/wind characteristics and seabed sediments, suggest that: (i) cross‐shore morphology, (ii) immediately previous (antecedent) shoreface morphodynamic behaviour and (iii) the presence, or lack of, offshore sand appear to be the primary controls on storm‐driven sedimentary changes attributed to the high‐energy event. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Divergent response of an intertidal swash bar

This paper examines the processes responsible for the morphodynamics of an intertidal swash bar at Skallingen, Denmark, during seven successive storms (one with a large surge of +3·02 m DNN). During this period a subtidal bar migrated landward onto the foreshore and continued to migrate across the intertidal zone as a swash bar. The onshore migration of the inner subtidal bar resulted from the erosion of sediment from the upper foreshore and dune ramp during the large storm surge that was transported seaward, causing the landward displacement of the bar through accretion on the landward slope. The magnitude and direction of suspended sediment transport within the intertidal zone, and more specifically at and close to the crest of the swash bar, varied with the ratio of both the significant (H_s) and average (H_avg) wave heights to the water depth (h_cr) at the swash bar crest (the local depth minimum). The transition between onshore and offshore suspended sediment transport was associated with the average wave of the incident distribution breaking on the swash bar crest (H_avgh ≈ 0·33). While the onshore‐directed transport was largest at infragravity frequencies, sediment resuspension was best explained by the skewed accelerations under the surf bores. Offshore transport was dominated by the cross‐shore mean currents (undertow) that developed when the significant wave of the distribution broke on the swash bar crest (H_sh ≈ 0·33) and weakened as the average wave of the distribution started to break at the crest (H_avgh ≈ 0·33) and the surf zone approached saturation. In contrast to subtidal bars, the swash bar at Skallingen exhibited a divergent behaviour with respect to the cross‐shore position of the breaker zone, migrating onshore when the average wave broke seaward of the crest and migrating offshore when the average wave broke landward of the crest. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

High resolution sensors in space and time for determination saltation and creep intensity

The measurement of aeolian sand transport rates at high temporal and spatial resolution is crucial for further progress in testing and developing numerical models of sand movement by wind and in the modelling of sand dunes, ripples and so on. This paper reports the development and field testing of two sand transport sensors. The first one, a webcam commonly used with personal computers, is a new device in aeolian research. The webcam frame transfer is triggered by a sonic anemometer every 0·1 second. Consecutive frames are compared and analysed in real‐time by a computer program. Changes in pixel light intensity exceeding a threshold level are recorded and interpreted as grain movements. The second sensor is a small‐sized ‘Saltiphone’‐type device made of simple loudspeakers with a diameter of 15 mm as used in MP3 players. It can be deployed as a 2 × 3 array of six such devices distributed to enable horizontal and vertical spatial sampling of the sand flux. The devices are tested under field conditions. Both signals and the sum of microphone impacts over 15 minutes are compared to data gathered using a Guelph sand trap, and very good agreement is found. Measurements in a wind tunnel using sieved natural sand indicate that the webcam can be used to infer additional information about the grain size. As an application, the fluid and impact thresholds for aeolian sand transport are investigated in field measurements by analysing the onset and breakdown of saltation in gust and lull intervals of rising and falling wind speeds, respectively. In this way, constitutive equations for sand transport in terms of the wind speed can be tested. If viable, they can be employed to infer estimates for the thresholds by minimizing the root‐mean‐square error between measured and calculated transport data. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Late‐Holocene buried forests on the Oregon Coast

Deposits of late‐Holocene beach sand buried conifer forests episodically emerge on beaches of the Oregon coast. Simultaneously, sand dunes buried late‐Holocene forests growing on marine terraces landward of the beaches. Dune ramps, up to 60 m in elevation, connected the beach and dune deposits. The average age of wood samples from stumps rooted on the shore platforms is 3·07 ± 1·45 ka. The average age of wood and charcoal samples embedded in forest soil on the marine terraces is 3·27 ± 1·46 ka. Between 1994 and 2006, winter storm waves exposed more than 4·5 km² of late‐Holocene forest soil on shore platforms at 19 localities. Rooted stumps without soil were uncovered at an additional 14 localities. Once exposed, wave action eroded the soil rapidly (one to two years). The intact forest soil and roots on the shore platforms must have been nearly continuously buried, protected and preserved prior to recent exposure. The late‐Holocene buried forest provides the basis for a conceptual model of coastal evolution. A three stage reversal of erosion and sand supply must have occurred: (1) wave erosion switched to seaward advancement of forests, (2) forest growth and soil development switched to burial beneath beach and dune sand and (3) burial and preservation switched to wave erosion, truncation of dune ramps and landward retreat of sea cliffs. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Hydrodynamic constraints and storm wave characteristics on a sub‐horizontal shore platform

Few studies of wave processes on shore platforms have addressed the hydrodynamic thresholds that control wave transformation and energy dissipation, especially under storm conditions. We present results of a field experiment conducted during a storm on a sub‐horizontal shore platform on the east coast of Auckland, New Zealand. Small (<0.5 m) locally generated waves typically occur at the field site, whereas during the experiment the offshore wave height reached 2.3 m. Our results illustrate the important control that platform morphology has on wave characteristics. At the seaward edge of the platform a scarp abruptly descends beneath low tide level. Wave height immediately seaward of the platform was controlled by the incident conditions, but near the cliff toe wave height on the platform was independent of incident conditions. Results show that a depth threshold at the seaward platform edge > 2.5 times the gravity wave height (0.05–0.33 Hz) is necessary for waves to propagate onto the platform without breaking. On the platform surface the wave height is a direct function of water depth, with limiting maximum wave height to water depth ratios of 0.55 and 0.78 at the centre of the platform and cliff toe, respectively. A relative ‘platform edge submergence’ (water depth/water height ratio) threshold of 1.1 is identified, below which infragravity (<0.05 Hz) wave energy dominates the platform energy spectra, and above which gravity waves are dominant. Infragravity wave height transformation across the platform is governed by the relative platform edge submergence. Finally, the paper describes the first observations of wave setup on a shore platform. During the peak of the storm, wave setup on the platform at low tide (0.21 m) is consistent with measurements from planar sandy beaches, but at higher tidal stages the ratio between incident wave height and maximum setup was lower than expected. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The effect of tides and storms on the sediment transport across a Dutch barrier island

Under natural conditions, barrier islands might grow vertically and migrate onshore under the influence of long‐term sea level rise. Sediment is transported onshore during storm‐induced overwash and inundation. However, on many Dutch Wadden Islands, dune openings are closed off by artificial sand‐drift dikes that prevent the influx of sediment during storms. It has been argued that creating openings in the dune row to allow regular flooding on barrier islands can have a positive effect on the sediment budget, but the dominant hydrodynamic processes and their influence on sediment transport during overwash and inundation are unknown. Here, we present an XBeach model study to investigate how sediment transport during overwash and inundation across the beach of a typical mesotidal Wadden Sea barrier island is influenced by wave, tide and storm surge conditions. Firstly, we validated the model XBeach with field data on waves and currents during island inundation. In general, the XBeach model performed well. Secondly, we studied the long‐term sediment transport across the barrier island. We distinguished six representative inundation classes, ranging from frequently occurring, low‐energy events to infrequent, high‐energy events, and simulated the hydrodynamics and sediment transport during these events. An analysis of the model simulations shows that larger storm events cause larger cross‐shore sediment transport, but the net sediment exchange during a storm levels off or even becomes smaller for the largest inundation classes because it is counteracted by larger mean water levels in the Wadden Sea that oppose or even reverse sediment transport during inundation. When taking into account the frequency of occurrence of storms we conclude that the cumulative effect of relatively mild storms on long‐term cross‐shore sediment transport is much larger than that of the large storm events. © 2017 The Authors. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.     

Coastal profile response to sea level rise: a process‐based approach

Prevailing ideas and calculations of coastal response to sea level rise (SLR) are often based on the Bruun model (Bruun P., Sea‐level rise as a cause of shore erosion, Journal Waterways Harbors Division, ASCE 88 : 117–130, 1962) that predicts upward and landward transfer of an equilibrium profile during SLR through offshore sediment transport on the shoreface. The model is based on a number of assumptions of questionable validity as well as outdated concepts on how sediment is transported across the shoreface. This contribution takes a numerical modelling approach that is based on first‐order processes contributing to the movement of sediment across the shoreface. Using a wave transformation model that predicts hydrodynamic processes driving cross‐shore sediment transport and an energetics‐based model for the coupling between hydrodynamics and sediment transport, we show that cross‐shore sediment transport is mainly onshore directed at the boundary between the lower and the upper shoreface, in agreement with the model proposed by Davidson‐Arnott (Conceptual model of the effects of sea level rise on sandy coasts, Journal of Coastal Research 21 : 1166–1172, 2005). The transition from onshore to offshore directed transport is located well within the surf zone and with a rising sea level this transition point becomes displaced landward and upward. Tests also show that substrate slope is of fundamental importance to the manner in which beaches react to rising sea level. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.