Retreat, Revert, Recover: Post-Industrial Coastal Sedimentation Patterns

Keywords: coastal geomorphology, sedimentation, anthropogenic influence, natural resource management
Session Type: Virtual Poster Abstract
Day: Saturday
Session Start / End Time: 2/26/2022 09:40 AM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/26/2022 11:00 AM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 37

Abstract

Rapid industrial coastline development in the Salish Sea provides a unique insight into anthropogenic influences on coastal geomorphology. Royal Roads Bay (Colwood, British Columbia) suffers chronic and episodic erosion coinciding with the cessation of operations at a historic gravel mining site, the presumed sediment source. A spatiotemporal investigation blending quantitative in-situ research and qualitative analysis was undertaken to determine the processes governing geomorphic recovery from sediment regime disturbance. Surveys of the site were collected with a total station theodolite over the course of the calm summer season to the stormy winter season. Air photos, satellite imagery, and in-situ photographs were collected for qualitative comparison. Historical documents and archaeological evidence were used to determine a baseline for the pre-development state of the area. Analysis reveals that a linear trend of sediment fluctuation is evident across the profile of the foreshore. Sediment starvation patterns are substantiated with visual analysis of qualitative data. The results indicate that anthropogenic practices of resource extraction altered the original geomorphic regime of the coastline. Reversion to the pre-developed state is supported by this research; however, climate change related sea level rise and increasingly intense storm events may affect this process.