Mid-El Nino Erosion At Nourished And Undernourished Southern California Beaches

Details

• Journal Title:
  Geophysical Research Letters
• Personal Author:
  Ludka, B. C. ; Gallien, T. W. ; Crosby, S. C. ; Guza, R. T.
• NOAA Program & Office:
  OAR (Oceanic and Atmospheric Research) ; Sea Grant
• Sea Grant Program:
  CASG/CUIMR (California Sea Grant)
• Description:
  Wave conditions in Southern California during the 2015–2016 El Niño were similar to the 2009–2010 El Niño, previously the most erosive (minimum beach widths and subaerial sand levels) in a 7 year record. As of February 2016, Torrey Pines Beach had eroded slightly below 2009–2010 levels, threatening the shoulder of a major highway. However, Cardiff, Solana, and Imperial Beaches, nourished with imported sand in 2012, were on average 1–2 m more elevated and more than 10 m wider than in 2009–2010. Monthly subaerial sand elevation observations showed that the nourished beaches remained consistently wider than unnourished beaches under similar wave conditions. In contrast to a 2001 nourishment at Torrey Pines built with native sized sand that was removed from the beach face during a single storm, these relatively coarse grained nourishments protected shorelines for several years, and during the significant wave attack of the 2015–2016 El Niño, as of February 2016.
• Source:
  Geophysical Research Letters 43(9): 4510-4516
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GL068612
• Sea Grant Document Number:
  CASG-R-16-014
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Funding:
  Grant no. NA10OAR4170060
• Place as Subject:
  California, Southern
• Rights Information:
  Other
• Compliance:
  Library
• Download URL:
  https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/43901/noaa_43901_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 944.41 KB]
• Collection(s):
  Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) ; Sea Grant Publications
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:f976b201f56b67b093e13a0697846ed3d12e9bbfee9abe4c10cb83709cf9417a