Hydrogeological changes in coastal aquifers due to sea level rise

Global warming and climatic changes can lead to sea level rise (SLR) of dozens of cms over up-coming decades, along with groundwater permanent reserve losses (PRL). This study focuses on understanding the processes and estimating groundwater losses. A case study for such phenomena is Israel's Coastal aquifer. PRL estimation methodology is based upon a simple hydrogeological conceptual model. The results lead to estimation of two main components of an aquifer's PRL, and to key factors that can enhance or mitigate these losses. Such recommended measures as high-resolution topographic mapping and improved monitoring of sea level have been noted.     

A probabilistic methodology to estimate future coastal flood risk due to sea level rise

In this paper we present a methodology to estimate the probability of future coastal flooding given uncertainty over possible sea level rise. We take as an example the range of sea level rise magnitudes for 2100 contained in the IPCC Third Assessment Report [Church, J.A., Gregory, J.M., Huybrechts, P., Kuhn, M., Lambeck, K., Nhuan, M.T., Qin, D., Woodworth, P.L., Anisimov, O.A., Bryan, F.O., Cazenave, A., Dixon, K.W., Fitzharris, B.B., Flato, G.M., Ganopolski, A., Gornitz, V., Lowe, J.A., Noda, A., Oberhuber, J.M., O'Farrell, S.P., Ohmura, A., Oppenheimer, M., Peltier, W.R., Raper, S.C.B., Ritz, C., Russell, G.L., Schlosser, E., Shum, C.K., Stocker, T.F., Stouffer, R.J., van de Wal, R.S.W., Voss, R., Wiebe, E.C., Wild, M., Wingham, D.J. and Zwally, H.J., 2001. Changes in sea level. In Houghton, J.T. et al. (eds), Climate Change 2001: The Scientific Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom, 881pp.] and infer a plausible probability distribution for this range. We then use a Monte Carlo procedure to sample from this distribution and use the resulting values as an additional boundary forcing for a two-dimensional model of coastal inundation used to simulate a 1 in 200 year extreme water level event. This yields an ensemble of simulations for an event of this magnitude occurring in 2100, where each member represents a different possible scenario of sea level rise by this time. We then develop a methodology to approximate the probability of flooding in each model grid cell over the ensemble and by combining these hazards maps with maps of land use values (consequence) we are able to estimate spatial contributions to flood risk that can aid planning and investment decisions. The method is then applied to a 32 km section of the UK coast in Somerset, South-West England and used to estimate the monetary losses and risk due a 1 in 200 year recurrence interval event under: (a) current conditions; (b) with the IPCC's most plausible value for sea level rise by 2100 (0.48 m) and (c) using the above methodology to fully account for uncertainty over possible sea level rise. The analysis shows that undertaking a risk assessment using the most plausible sea level rise value may significantly underestimate monetary losses as it fails to account for the impact of low probability, high consequence events. The developed method provides an objective basis for decisions regarding future defence spending and can be easily extended to consider other sources of uncertainty such as changing event frequency–magnitude distribution, changing storm surge conditions or model structural uncertainty, either singly or in combination as joint probabilities.     

Climate change, sea level rise and integrated coastal zone management: An IPCC approach

Expansion of economic activities, urbanisation, increased resource use and population growth are continuously increasing the vulnerability of the coastal zone. This vulnerability is now further raised by the threat of climate change and accelerated sea level rise. The potentially severe impacts force policy-makers to also consider long-term planning for climate change and sea level rise. For reasons of efficiency and effectiveness this long-term planning should be integrated with existing short-term plans, thus creating an Integrated Coastal Zone Management programme.As a starting point for coastal zone management, the assessment of a country's or region's vulnerability to accelerated sea level rise is of utmost importance. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has developed a common methodology for this purpose. Studies carried out according to this Common Methodology have been compared and combined, from which general conclusions on local, regional and global vulnerability have been drawn, the latter in the form of a Global Vulnerability Assessment.In order to address the challenge of coping with climate change and accelerated sea level rise, it is essential to foresee the possible impacts, and to take precautionary action. Because of the long lead times needed for creating the required technical and institutional infrastructures, such action should be taken in the short term. Furthermore, it should be part of a broader coastal zone management and planning context. This will require a holistic view, shared by the different institutional levels that exist, along which different needs and interests should be balanced.     

Potential impact of sea level rise on coastal surges in southeast Louisiana

Potential impacts of 0.5 and 1.0 m of relative sea level rise (RSLR) on hurricane surge and waves in southeast Louisiana are investigated using the numerical storm surge model ADCIRC and the nearshore spectral wave model STWAVE. The models were applied for six hypothetic hurricanes that produce approximately 100 yr water levels in southeastern Louisiana. In areas of maximum surge, the impact of RSLR on surge was generally linear (equal to the RSLR). In wetland or wetland-fronted areas of moderate peak surges (2-3 m), the surge levels were increased by as much as 1-3 m (in addition to the RSLR). The surge increase is as much as double and triple the RSLR over broad areas and as much as five times the RSLR in isolated areas. Waves increase significantly in shallow areas due to the combined increases in water depth due to RSLR and surge increases. Maximum increases in wave height for the modeled storms were 1-1.5 m. Surge propagation over broad, shallow, wetland areas is highly sensitive to RSLR. Wave heights also generally increased for all RSLR cases. These increases were significant (0.5-1.5 m for 1 m RSLR), but less dramatic than the surge increases.     

Coastal vulnerability assessment of the future sea level rise in Udupi coastal zone of Karnataka state, west coast of India

Udupi coast in Karnataka state, along the west coast of India, selected as a study area, is well known for sandy beaches, aquaculture ponds, lush greenery, temples and major and minor industries. It lies between 13°00′00″–13°45′00″ north latitudes and 74°47′30″–74°30′00″ east longitudes, the length of the coastline is 95 km, and is oriented along the NNW–SSE direction. It is vulnerable to accelerated sea level rise (SLR) due to its low topography and its high ecological and touristy value. The present study has been carried out with a view to calculate the coastal vulnerability index (CVI) to know the high and low vulnerable areas and area of inundation due to future SLR, and land loss due to coastal erosion. Both conventional and remotely sensed data were used and analysed through the modelling technique and by using ERDAS Imagine and geographical information system software. The rate of erosion was 0.6018 km²/yr during 2000–2006 and around 46 km of the total 95 km stretch is under critical erosion. Out of the 95 km stretch coastline, 59% is at very high risk, 7% high, 4% moderate and 30% in the low vulnerable category, due to SLR. Results of the inundation analysis indicate that 42.19 km² and 372.08 km² of the land area will be submerged by flooding at 1 m and 10 m inundation levels. The most severely affected sectors are expected to be the residential and recreational areas, agricultural land, and the natural ecosystem. As this coast is planned for future coastal developmental activities, measures such as building regulation, urban growth planning, development of an integrated coastal zone management, strict enforcement of the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Act 1991, monitoring of impacts and further research in this regard are recommended for the study area.     

Defining the seaward extent of New Zealand's coastal zone

The seaward extent of New Zealand's coastal zone (defined here in a biophysical sense as the area of terrigenous influence) was determined from remotely sensed ocean colour and turbidity data. The cross-shore behavior of the colour and turbidity fields were quantified at a number of transects around the coastline and the locations where these fields changed from coastal to oceanic signatures were identified. Results from these analyses suggest that the coastal zone can extend several hundreds of kilometers offshore. Furthermore, the seaward extent determined from these analyses was not correlated to the underlying bathymetry of the continental shelf and slope; features commonly used to define the offshore extent of coastal zones. The estimated seaward limits determined from the analyses of the remotely sensed data were compared to limited available in situ data and predictions from a numerical circulation model. Observations of coastal zooplankton species several hundreds of kilometers offshore suggest good agreement with the predicted seaward extent of coastal zones determined from the remotely sensed data. Offshore transport of surface particles predicted by the circulation model also suggested that pelagic organisms and suspended inorganic particles may be advected offshore at least several hundreds of kilometers.     

海平面上升、强台风和风暴潮对厦门海域极值水位的影响及危险性预估

气候变化背景下海平面上升、强台风和风暴潮对我国东南沿海地区的洪涝灾害影响日益严重,为应对气候变化的影响,本文以位于我国东南沿海的厦门地区为例,应用多种海洋大气观测资料和数理统计及模拟方法,分析了历史上9914号和1614号两次台风对厦门海域极端海面高度(极值水位)的影响,预估了未来海平面上升情景下厦门海域极值水位的变化及其危险性。结果表明：(1) 9914号台风期间,天文大潮、风暴增水和强降水的同时出现造成了厦门沿海地区超警戒极值水位(732 cm)的出现;(2) 风(向岸强风)、雨(强降水)、浪(巨浪)、潮(高潮位)、流(急流)等多致灾因子的共同作用是厦门沿海地区发生严重灾情的重要原因;(3) 在温室气体中等和高排放(RCP4.5和RCP8.5)情景下,到2050年(2100年),当前百年一遇的极值水位将分别变为30年(2年)一遇(RCP4.5)和25年(低于1年)一遇(RCP8.5)的频繁极端事件。这表明未来厦门沿海极值水位的危险性将显著上升,应采取充分的适应措施降低洪涝灾害风险。     

Vulnerability assessment of coastal wetlands in Minjiang River Estuary based on cloud model under sea level rise

The change of coastal wetland vulnerability affects the ecological environment and the economic development of the estuary area. In the past, most of the assessment studies on the vulnerability of coastal ecosystems stayed in static qualitative research, lacking predictability, and the qualitative and quantitative relationship was not objective enough. In this study, the “Source-Pathway-Receptor-Consequence” model and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change vulnerability definition were us...     

考虑海平面上升影响的极值水位计算

本研究基于非平稳序列极值理论,定量分析极端水位事件年超越概率受海平面上升的影响;以工程设计使用年限内极端水位发生概率作为控制条件,构建考虑海平面上升的极值水位计算方法;结合平均海平面的长期变化过程,推算海平面上升下的极值水位。基于全球10个验潮站历史水位观测资料,验证历史平均海平面长期变化与高、低水位耿贝尔分布位置参数变化的一致性以及构建方法的合理性。结合政府间气候变化专门委员会对海平面上升的预测,推算和对比分析不同海平面上升情景下的极值水位,并评估相应极值水位在当前极值分布中的重现期。     

Analyzing sea level rise and tide characteristics change driven by coastal construction at Mokpo Coastal Zone in Korea

This study investigates a construction-induced sea level rise and tide characteristics change, using a regression analysis to separate the local construction effect such as sea-dike/seawalls and global warming from total sea level change. The study also makes it clear why and how the extreme high water level has risen just after constructions at Mokpo harbor in Korea. As a result of the regression analysis, it is found that the high water level rise for the period of 1960–2006 is ～60 cm, which is summation of four components: ～23 cm for Youngsan River sea-dike (1981), ～15 cm for Youngam seawall (1991), ～8 cm for Geumho seawall (1994), and ～14 cm for gradual rise (due mainly to global warming). Then, a numerical simulation at Mokpo coastal zone is performed to identify each component, and the results support the premise that the tidal amplification caused by constructions is due mainly to the extinguishment of the tidal choking effect at outer Mokpogu. The tidal flat effect makes the amplification greater at spring tide or extraordinary high tide, which would result in the increase of inundation risk at the Mokpo coastal zone. Frequency distribution of observed high water level data shows increasing trend for both maximum value of astronomical tide component (simulated high water level) and meteorological tide component (surge height) after the coastal constructions. A frequency analysis presents that the high water level for 50 year return period, which is often used for design in practice, is 474 cm before the construction, and while that is 553 cm after the construction. Furthermore, design height might steadily be elevated considering future global sea level rise.     

海平面上升对海岸潮差响应的理论解析

应用海湾和半封闭矩形海域改进的Taylor问题的解研究海平面上升对M2分潮旋转潮波系统及沿岸潮差的变化.将南黄海概化为一等深矩形海域,初步研究在海平面上升3 m和5 m条件下该海域旋转潮波系统的演化趋势,继而分析沿岸潮差变化特征.初步分析研究表明:随着海平面上升,该海域M2分潮的无潮点有向东南方向偏移的趋势,受此影响,沿岸潮差呈现不同的变化特征,靠近无潮点的左侧及湾顶海岸变化明显,而远离无潮点的右侧及湾顶海岸则变化不大.     

海平面上升对河北黄骅台风风暴潮漫滩影响的数值研究

基于河北省黄骅地区的风暴潮漫滩灾害风险评估模型,利用成熟的业务化台风风暴潮数值预报模式、100m分辨率的风暴潮漫滩数值模式,以及该地区的海平面上升和地面沉降结果数据,对台风登陆地点、路径、方向进行科学组合,利用各种组合参数条件进行数值计算,得到了995、985、975、965hPa四种台风强度下,海平面上升对风暴潮漫滩的影响。在相对海平面上升50cm和100cm情况下,四种台风强度的风暴潮平均最大漫滩面积分别增加了约35%和86%;台风强度中等,即985或975hPa时,风暴潮最大漫滩面积的增加更为显著。研究表明,海平面上升对该地区的漫滩影响非常明显,有效防范风暴潮灾害的同时,在气候变化的大背景下,应进一步研究和提出应对海平面上升的长效防治措施。     

Extreme sea level events in the coastal waters of western Estonia

Extraordinarily low and high sea level events are analysed on the basis of historical data and their mechanisms of occurrence are studied with the 1 km grid size 2D hydrodynamic model in the two almost tideless semi-enclosed sub-basins of the Baltic Sea, the Gulf of Riga and the Väinameri. The sea level is modelled with realistic meteorological forcing and comparison data from 1999 and 2001. Resonance properties of the sub-basins are studied and their possible role in the formation of extraordinary sea level events is discussed. While the extremely low levels (−1.23 m below the mean sea level) in the Estonian coastal waters do not generally originate locally, the high levels (up to 2.53 m above the mean as measured in the Pärnu Bay) are short-term and local. They occur in combination with several forcing and morphometrical factors and are localised in the shallow and narrow bays exposed to the direction of the strongest possible storm winds, SW and W. Model simulations show that extremely high and low sea levels in some small bays of western Estonia can exceed the corresponding values in the Pärnu Bay.     

Field studies of the motion of sediments in the coastal zone of the sea

We present the results of measurements carried out with the help of the “Donnaya Stantsiya” complex of equipment in the coastal zone of the Crimean shelf near Evpatoriya and near the southeast end of the Kosa Tuzla Island. For the same intensity of winds in these regions, the intensities of waves and turbulence in the coastal zone near Evpatoriya are much higher and, hence, the fluxes of suspended sediments are more intense. The accumulated data are intended for the correction of the kinetic model used for the evaluation of the characteristics of the field of suspended sediments in the shallow-water areas.     

Risk assessment and zoning of sea level rise in Shandong Province

Sea level rise is a slow-onset disaster.We collected information about the natural and ecological environments,tides and sea levels,and socio-economic aspects to investigate the distribution and zoning of the risks from sea level rise across Shandong Province.The trends in sea level in different counties of Shandong Province were predicted using moving averages and a random dynamic analysis forecasting model,and the model outputs and socio-economic indicators were combined to assess the risks.The results show that the risks of sea level rise along the western coast of Bohai Bay and Laizhou Bay in Shandong Province were sufficiently large to warrant attention.     

Information-and-measuring drifter system for the monitoring of currents in the coastal zone of the sea

The autonomous drifting buoys equipped with satellite link turn into one of the most important components of the global system of operative observations of the ocean and the surface layer of the atmosphere. However, on the regional level, the problem of analysis of the surface circulation of waters in the coastal zone and sea straits remains quite urgent because the available drifters cannot be used in this case due to their sizes and long intervals between measurements. We present the results of development and testing of a new drifter system aimed at measuring currents. The system is based on the use of buoys operating at depths less than 1 m. To improve the space-and-time resolution of measurements, the buoys are equipped with receivers of the global positioning system (GPS) and GSM modems for the data transfer via cellular communication networks. The drifter system guarantees the possibility of determination of the coordinates of buoys with a resolution of 3 min in time and 14 m in space. We describe the specific features of the design of the proposed information-and-measuring drifter system and present the first results of application of new buoys called “minidrifters” for the pilot monitoring of currents in the Kerch Strait.     

辽河三角洲地区海平面上升趋势及其影响评估

根据潮位资料分析,辽河三角洲平原和辽东湾东岸近四五十年来相对海平面处于上升趋势,从70年代以来平均每年上升量为5mm左右.考虑到辽河三角洲平原地面下沉以及全球性海平面将加速上升,预计下个世纪内,辽河三角洲平原相对海平面上升的速率将达到8-10mm/a,到2050年相对海平面上升量将达到40～55cm.利用遥感和地理信息系统,对不同的海平面上升量将造成的土地淹没损失进行了预测.如不加防护,相对海平面上升0.5m时,将淹没近4000km2,包括整个营口市区和半个盘锦市区;上升1.0m时,将淹没5000km2.对海平面上升将造成海岸侵蚀、风暴潮和洪涝等灾害加剧等影响也进行了分析.     

Transformations in the Caspian Sea ecosystem under the fall and rise of the sea level

By the data of the surveys performed in 1976, 1983, and annually from 1995 to 2006, the successive transformations of the ecosystem were traced in the Central and Southern Caspian Sea: from the anoxic conditions in 1933–1934 to the oxic state during the low level period in 1978, then the hypoxia increase and accumulation of nutrients registered anew after 1995, and to the hydrogen sulfide appearance in the near-bottom layers of the Southern Caspian Sea. Some irreversible changes in the silicon distribution in the Central Caspian Sea were revealed (the concentration increase to 217 μM at the depth of 780 m, which considerably exceeded the absolute values for the World Ocean).     

2016年中国沿海海平面上升显著成因分析及影响

使用中国沿海及西北太平洋区域的水位、海温、气温、气压和风等水文气象资料,详细分析了2016年中国沿海海平面显著升高的成因及影响。分析结果表明:（1）2012-2016年,中国沿海海平面处于准2 a、4 a、准9 a和准19 a周期振荡的高位,几个周期振荡高位叠加,对该时段海平面上升起了一定的作用;（2）2016年,中国沿海气温和海温较1993-2011年的平均值分别高0.7℃与0.5℃,均处于1980年以来高位;气压较1993-2011年的平均值低0.2 hPa;（3）2016年4月、9月、10月和11月,中国沿海海平面均达到1980年以来同期高位,这4个月的风场距平值在东海以南均明显偏大,且以偏南向和向岸风为主,风生流使得海水向岸堆积,沿海长时间以增水为主,对当月局部海平面上升的贡献率达到40%~80%;（4）2016年,中国沿海降水总体偏多,局部区域降水量达到历史同期最高,加上沿海径流量的增加,对沿海局部海平面升高有一定贡献;（5）2016年9-10月,有5个台风相继影响我国南部沿海,持续的风暴潮增水导致台风影响期间的海平面高于当月平均海平面70~360 mm,风暴潮和洪涝灾害给当地造成直接经济损失超过30亿元。