Validating the Coastal Armoring Database using a custom Field Survey

Abstract:

UCSC GEOPATHS is an NSF-supported initiative to improve student success in the geosciences, driven by a desire to broaden participation. One component of the program is undergraduate student internship that provide authentic, career-relevant experiences – across all employment sectors – to increase student engagement in the geoscience pipeline.

My GEOPATHS Internship at the California Coastal Commission focused on compiling field data on existing coastal armoring structures constructed to protect development from wave action and coastal erosion. Coastal armoring such as seawalls, rock revetments, retaining walls, surface armoring, cave infills, and bulkheads cover more than 10% of California’s coast to combat global sea level rise. However, these structures can pose a threat to the surrounding beaches as they interrupt the natural coastal processes. The structures can increase erosion up and down the coast by focusing wave energy over a smaller surface area, shrink beaches by preventing natural landward migration of the shoreline and reducing/eliminating a source of beach sand from eroding bluffs, and restrict public beach access by altering the shape of the coastline. I was tasked to collect photos and basic information of armoring structures and record site conditions and field observations using a custom Field Survey. The survey validates the Coastal Armoring Database by collecting ground truth data and pictures of armoring structures. The future prospect is to attach structure permits to the Coastal Armoring Database web map to provide easily accessible information. Through this internship I learned about the California coast, coastal armoring, and dynamic coastal processes. I will share the results of my project and experiences in the program.