A linear relationship between wave power and erosion determines salt-marsh resilience to violent storms and hurricanes

Leonardi, Nicoletta, Ganju, Neil K and Fagherazzi, Sergio (2016) A linear relationship between wave power and erosion determines salt-marsh resilience to violent storms and hurricanes. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 113 (1). pp. 64-68.

Text 64.full.pdf - Unspecified Access to this file is embargoed until Unspecified. Download (849kB)

Abstract

Salt marsh losses have been documented worldwide because of land use change, wave erosion, and sea-level rise. It is still unclear how resistant salt marshes are to extreme storms and whether they can survive multiple events without collapsing. Based on a large dataset of salt marsh lateral erosion rates collected around the world, here, we determine the general response of salt marsh boundaries to wave action under normal and extreme weather conditions. As wave energy increases, salt marsh response to wind waves remains linear, and there is not a critical threshold in wave energy above which salt marsh erosion drastically accelerates. We apply our general formulation for salt marsh erosion to historical wave climates at eight salt marsh locations affected by hurricanes in the United States. Based on the analysis of two decades of data, we find that violent storms and hurricanes contribute less than 1% to long-term salt marsh erosion rates. In contrast, moderate storms with a return period of 2.5 mo are those causing the most salt marsh deterioration. Therefore, salt marshes seem more susceptible to variations in mean wave energy rather than changes in the extremes. The intrinsic resistance of salt marshes to violent storms and their predictable erosion rates during moderate events should be taken into account by coastal managers in restoration projects and risk management plans.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	salt marsh, resilience, hurricanes, wind waves, erosion
Subjects:	?? Q1 ??
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	14 Jan 2016 15:53
Last Modified:	16 Mar 2024 13:08
DOI:	10.1073/pnas.1510095112
Related URLs:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/2046779