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Coastal hazards are physical phenomena that expose a coastal area to the risk of property damage, loss of life, and environmental degradation.Rapid-onset hazards last a few minutes to several days and encompass significant cyclones accompanied by high-speed winds, waves, and surges or tsunamis created by submarine (undersea) earthquakes and landslides.
Coastal erosion is one of the most significant hazards associated with the coast. Not in terms of a rare massive release of energy or material resulting in loss of life, as is associated with tsunami and cyclones, but in terms of a continual chronic release that forms a threat to infrastructure, capital assets and property.
Coastal flooding during Hurricane Lili in 2002 on Louisiana Highway 1 (United States). Coastal flooding occurs when dry and low-lying land is submerged by seawater. [1] The range of a coastal flooding is a result of the elevation of floodwater that penetrates the inland which is controlled by the topography of the coastal land exposed to flooding.
For coastal or lake flooding, a 100-year flood is generally expressed as a flood elevation or depth, and may include wave effects. For river systems, a 100-year flood is generally expressed as a flowrate. Based on the expected 100-year flood flow rate, the flood water level can be mapped as an area of inundation.
Coastal and estuarine ecosystems act as buffer zones against natural hazards and environmental disturbances, such as floods, cyclones, tidal surges and storms. The role they play is to "[absorb] a portion of the impact and thus [lessen] its effect on the land". [ 22 ]
Intertidal zones are sensitive habitats with an abundance of marine species that can experience ecological hazards associated with tourism and human-induced environmental impacts. A variety of other threats that have been summarized by scientists include nutrient pollution , overharvesting , habitat destruction , and climate change . [ 8 ]
The following is an example of a coastal flood warning issued by the National Weather Service office in Boston, Massachusetts. [2]000 WHUS41 KBOX 071920 CFWBOX URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED COASTAL HAZARD MESSAGE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA 220 PM EST THU FEB 7 2013 ...COASTAL FLOOD WARNING FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS EAST FACING COASTLINE AROUND THE TIME OF THE FRIDAY EVENING AND ...
Coastal erosion may be caused by hydraulic action, abrasion, impact and corrosion by wind and water, and other forces, natural or unnatural. [3] On non-rocky coasts, coastal erosion results in rock formations in areas where the coastline contains rock layers or fracture zones with varying resistance to erosion.