scholarly journals Land subsidence and relative sea-level rise in the southern Chesapeake Bay region

Circular ◽  
2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jack Eggleston ◽  
Jason Pope
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Chesapeake Bay ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Land Subsidence ◽  
Relative Sea Level ◽  
Relative Sea Level Rise

Trends in Chesapeake Bay Sedimentation Rates during the Late Holocene

1990 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph F. Donoghue
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Chesapeake Bay ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Late Holocene ◽  
Tide Gauge ◽  
Past Century ◽  
Sedimentation Rates ◽  
Relative Sea Level ◽  
The Past ◽  
Relative Sea Level Rise

AbstractTrends are discernible in the estimates of late Holocene rates of sedimentation and sea-level rise for the Chesapeake Bay. During most of the Holocene Epoch sedimentation rates and relative sea-level rise were equal, within the limits of measurement, at approximately 1 mm yr−1. Sedimentation rates measured over the past century, however, are nearly an order of magnitude higher, while the rate of relative sea-level rise for the Chesapeake Bay now averages 3.3 mm yr−1, as measured on long-term tide gauge records. When the acceleration in these rates occurred is uncertain, but it appears to have been confined to the past millennium, and probably to the past few centuries. The rapid sedimentation rates recorded during historic time may be a temporary disequilibrium that has resulted from a recent acceleration in the rate of relative sea-level rise.

Recent measurements of subsidence in the Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta, Bangladesh

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael S. Steckler ◽  
Bar Oryan ◽  
Md. Hasnat Jaman ◽  
Dhiman R. Mondal ◽  
Céline Grall ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Land Subsidence ◽  
Anthropogenic Activity ◽  
Relative Sea Level ◽  
The North ◽  
Active Tectonic ◽  
Relative Sea Level Rise ◽  
Tectonic Boundaries ◽  
The Ganges

<p>Deltas, the low-lying land at rivers mouths, are sensitive to the delicate balance between sea level rise, land subsidence and sedimentation. Bangladesh and the Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta (GBD) have been highlighted as a region at risk from sea level rise, but reliable estimates of land subsidence have been limited. While early studies in the GBD suggested high rates of relative sea level rise, recent papers estimate more modest rates. Our objective is to better quantify the magnitude, spatial variability, and depth variation of compaction and subsidence in the GBD in order to better evaluate the processes controlling it and the pattern of relative sea level rise in this vulnerable region.</p><p>With support from the Bangladesh Water Development Board, we have rehabilitated previously installed GNSS and installed new GNSS co-located with Rod Surface Elevation Tables (RSET) to better understand the balance of subsidence and sedimentation in the coastal zone in SW Bangladesh, which is less affected by the active tectonic boundaries to the north and the east. The continuous GNSSs installed in 2003 and 2012 were mounted on reinforced concrete building roofs. GPS stations in the area yield subsidence rate estimates of 3-7 mm/y.  To densify the subsidence data, in early 2020 we resurveyed 48 concrete Survey of Bangladesh geodetic monuments in SW Bangladesh that were installed in 2002. Although only measured at the start and end of the period, the time span between the two measurements is ~18 years enabling us to estimate subsidence over this timespan.</p><p>Preliminary results show that about ½ the sites yielded very high subsidence rates; repeat measurements confirm the suspicion that the monuments at these sites are unstable and have undergone localized subsidence from settling or anthropogenic activity. The remaining sites show an increase in subsidence from the NW to the SE, consistent with estimates of average Holocene subsidence (Grall et al., 2018). However, rates from the campaign stations are much higher than those from continuous GNSS sites, but only slightly higher than an RSET site. We interpret that the continuous building GNSS omit very shallow compaction-related subsidence, while RSETs neglect deep subsidence. This is further reinforced by results from a compaction meter consisting of 6 wells from 20 to 300 m depth with vertical optical fiber strainmeters in each well. They show a decrease in compaction with depth. While initial results require further investigation, we highlight the importance of multiple methodologies for interpreting subsidence rates--deep, shallow, natural, anthropogenic--in vulnerable delta regions.</p>

scholarly journals Land Subsidence in Chiayi, Taiwan, from Compaction Well, Leveling and ALOS/PALSAR: Aquaculture-Induced Relative Sea Level Rise

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei-Chia Hung ◽  
Cheinway Hwang ◽  
Yi-An Chen ◽  
Lei Zhang ◽  
Kuan-Hung Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Land Subsidence ◽  
Alos Palsar ◽  
Relative Sea Level ◽  
Relative Sea Level Rise

scholarly journals COUNTERMEASURE AGAINST EROSION BEHIND SUBMERGED BREAKWATER DUE TO SEA LEVEL RISE

2018 ◽  
pp. 62
Author(s):  
Yoshiaki Kuriyama ◽  
Masayuki Banno
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Land Subsidence ◽  
West Coast ◽  
Shoreline Change ◽  
Sandy Beaches ◽  
Beach Erosion ◽  
Relative Sea Level ◽  
Submerged Breakwater ◽  
Relative Sea Level Rise

Submerged breakwaters are considered to be preferable countermeasures against beach erosion where the availability of sediments for nourishment is limited and tourism is prevalent because submerged breakwaters do not interfere with the view of the horizon from the shore. However, sandy beaches protected by submerged breakwaters are assumed to be vulnerable to relative sea level rise (SLR) and land subsidence because the crests of submerged breakwaters are below sea level. Kuriyama and Banno (2016) numerically predicted the future shoreline change under SLR and land subsidence on the Niigata West coast in Japan, which is protected by submerged breakwaters. The prediction showed that the shoreline will retreat 60 m over the next 100 years. In this study, we investigated the effects of countermeasures against the erosion due to SLR and land subsidence.

scholarly journals Vulnerability of Venice's coastland to relative sea-level rise

2020 ◽  
Vol 382 ◽  
pp. 689-695
Author(s):  
Luigi Tosi ◽  
Cristina Da Lio ◽  
Sandra Donnici ◽  
Tazio Strozzi ◽  
Pietro Teatini
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Land Subsidence ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Sar Interferometry ◽  
Economic Activities ◽  
Relative Sea Level ◽  
Coastal System ◽  
Relative Sea Level Rise ◽  
The Mean

Abstract. Relative sea-level rise (RSLR), i.e. sea-level rise due to climate changes combined with land subsidence, is one of the processes that is most severely threatening the coastal systems around the world. The Venice coastland forms the major low-lying area in Italy and encompasses a variety of environments, such as farmlands, estuaries, deltas, lagoons and urbanized areas. Valuable ecosystems, historical heritages and economic activities are located in this area. Since most of the territory lies at a ground elevation below or slightly above the mean sea-level, also a few mm yr−1 of land subsidence can seriously impacts on the Venice coastal system. In this study, we present an analysis of the vulnerability to RSLR considering an uneven land subsidence distribution, with an application on the Venice coastland. The analysis is delineated at the regional scale by an index-based model and a proper coupling of various thematic layers, such as high spatial resolution land subsidence data retrieved by satellite SAR interferometry, ongoing and projected sea-level rise trends, and morpho-physiographic setting of the coastland.

scholarly journals Land subsidence contributions to relative sea level rise at tide gauge Galveston Pier 21, Texas

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Liu ◽  
Jiang Li ◽  
John Fasullo ◽  
Devin L. Galloway
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Land Subsidence ◽  
Flood Hazard ◽  
Tide Gauge ◽  
Mitigation Strategies ◽  
Relative Sea Level ◽  
Aquifer System ◽  
Relative Sea Level Rise

Abstract Relative sea level rise at tide gauge Galveston Pier 21, Texas, is the combination of absolute sea level rise and land subsidence. We estimate subsidence rates of 3.53 mm/a during 1909–1937, 6.08 mm/a during 1937–1983, and 3.51 mm/a since 1983. Subsidence attributed to aquifer-system compaction accompanying groundwater extraction contributed as much as 85% of the 0.7 m relative sea level rise since 1909, and an additional 1.9 m is projected by 2100, with contributions from land subsidence declining from 30 to 10% over the projection interval. We estimate a uniform absolute sea level rise rate of 1.10 mm ± 0.19/a in the Gulf of Mexico during 1909–1992 and its acceleration of 0.270 mm/a2 at Galveston Pier 21 since 1992. This acceleration is 87% of the value for the highest scenario of global mean sea level rise. Results indicate that evaluating this extreme scenario would be valid for resource-management and flood-hazard-mitigation strategies for coastal communities in the Gulf of Mexico, especially those affected by subsidence.

The existential crisis of the Mekong delta: Impact of accelerating land subsidence

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip S.J. Minderhoud ◽  
Gilles Erkens ◽  
Hans Middelkoop ◽  
Esther Stouthamer
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Land Subsidence ◽  
Mekong Delta ◽  
Relative Sea Level ◽  
Natural Processes ◽  
Existential Crisis ◽  
The World ◽  
Relative Sea Level Rise ◽  
Imminent Threat

<p>Land subsidence is one of the slowest, natural processes faced by deltas throughout the world, yet it acts as an important catalyst which exacerbates all other threats associated with relative sea-level rise, such as increased flood vulnerability and salinization. This presentation summarizes the results of five years of research on land subsidence in the Mekong delta and highlights the major advances in approaches and insights gained in subsidence processes and rates of an entire mega-delta system.</p><p>The Mekong delta is heading towards an existential crisis as land subsidence rates are rapidly accelerating over the past decades up to ~5 cm/yr. As sediment starvation in the Mekong river greatly reduces the adaptive capacity to counterbalance subsidence, this results in wide-spread loss of delta elevation. With the Mekong delta having an average elevation of less than 1 meter above local mean sea level, these elevated rates of relative sea-level rise pose an imminent threat of land loss and permanent submersion in the coming decades.</p><p>Like in many densely populated and rapidly developing coastal-deltaic areas around the world, the main anthropogenic driver that causes accelerated subsidence is the overexploitation of groundwater. A range of future delta elevation projections, considering sea-level rise and simulated groundwater extraction-induced subsidence following extraction pathways, show the dire situation of the delta in spatial-temporal explicit maps of future elevation relative to local sea level.</p><p>Adequate (ground)water management aimed at strongly reducing current extractions is key in mitigating accelerating sinking rates and crucial to ensure the survival of the Mekong delta. The window of opportunity to act is swiftly closing as the delta is rapidly running out of elevation, and therefore time.</p>

How to tackle spatial variability and temporal non-linearity in land subsidence in unconsolidated coastal environments?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip S.J. Minderhoud ◽  
Claudia Zoccarato ◽  
Riccardo Xotta ◽  
Pietro Teatini
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Land Subsidence ◽  
Land Surface ◽  
Field Experiments ◽  
Data Interpretation ◽  
Coastal Environments ◽  
Relative Sea Level ◽  
Aquifer System ◽  
Relative Sea Level Rise

<p>Accurate land subsidence quantifications are of growing importance as relative sea-level rise in unconsolidated coastal environments is increasingly dominated by subsidence. Land subsidence, especially in unconsolidated settings, is the result of a complex interplay and sum of a range of different subsurface processes. As these processes can be spatially and temporally very variable, it requires more than (point and/or land surface) measurements to accurately quantify subsidence, especially when projections of subsidence are required for example to assess future relative sea-level rise. This requires first of all a thorough understanding of subsidence drivers and subsurface processes in a 4D perspective (3D including time) and secondly data interpretation methods and tools to handle the complex coupling of these interrelated processes to enable spatial-temporal quantification and projection of coastal subsidence.</p><p>We present a set of novel approaches, with which we aim to move our capacity to accurately capture and simulate the highly dynamic behaviour of subsidence processes. The approaches range from novel field experiments to advanced interpretation of sedimentary information in coastal-deltaic setting to gain important input for numerical modelling, and to newly-developed state-of-the-art 3D numerical simulators. Through these combined methodologies we aim to improve our capacity to assess both natural subsidence processes, like natural compaction, and anthropogenic-induced processes, like aquifer-system compaction following overexploitation in unconsolidated settings. This will ultimately contribute, for example through scenario modelling of anthropogenic drivers, to create reliable future projections of land subsidence which will enable sound projections of relative sea-level rise.</p>

Submergence, nutrient enrichment, and tropical storm impacts on Spartina alterniflora in the microtidal northern Gulf of Mexico

2020 ◽  
Vol 644 ◽  
pp. 33-45
Author(s):  
JM Hill ◽  
PS Petraitis ◽  
KL Heck
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Spartina Alterniflora ◽  
Anthropogenic Impacts ◽  
Interactive Effects ◽  
Relative Sea Level ◽  
Hurricane Disturbance ◽  
Submergence Stress ◽  
Relative Sea Level Rise

Salt marshes face chronic anthropogenic impacts such as relative sea level rise and eutrophication, as well as acute disturbances from tropical storms that can affect the productivity of these important communities. However, it is not well understood how marshes already subjected to eutrophication and sea level rise will respond to added effects of episodic storms such as hurricanes. We examined the interactive effects of nutrient addition, sea level rise, and a hurricane on the growth, biomass accumulation, and resilience of the saltmarsh cordgrass Spartina alterniflora in the Gulf of Mexico. In a microtidal marsh, we manipulated nutrient levels and submergence using marsh organs in which cordgrasses were planted at differing intertidal elevations and measured the impacts of Hurricane Isaac, which occurred during the experiment. Prior to the hurricane, grasses at intermediate and high elevations increased in abundance. After the hurricane, all treatments lost approximately 50% of their shoots, demonstrating that added nutrients and elevation did not provide resistance to hurricane disturbance. At the end of the experiment, only the highest elevations had been resilient to the hurricane, with increased above- and belowground growth. Added nutrients provided a modest increase in above- and belowground growth, but only at the highest elevations, suggesting that only elevation will enhance resilience to hurricane disturbance. These results empirically demonstrate that S. alterniflora in microtidal locations already subjected to submergence stress is less able to recover from storm disturbance and suggests we may be underestimating the loss of northern Gulf Coast marshes due to relative sea level rise.

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