Interaction of Barrier Islands and Storms: Implications for Flood Risk Reduction in Louisiana and Mississippi

Grzegorzewski, Alison Sleath; Cialone, Mary A.; Wamsley, Ty V.

doi:10.2112/si59-016.1

Cited by 26 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…This confirms findings in previous numerical modeling efforts (Grzegorzewski et al, 2008;Grzegorzewski, Cialone, and Wamsley, 2011;Otten, Bakker, and Meijer, 2006;TBS&S, 1997), which found that the barrier islands may block surge water completely when facing low-intensity but frequent storms or limit overtopping water volume when facing highintensity hurricanes. Although direct measurements of the reduction of surge elevation in the back embayment area behind barrier islands are rarely available, numerical studies have proven that shrinking barrier islands increase the level of flooding risks on the leeward side of the barrier islands (Cialone, 1993;Stone, Zhang, and Sheremet, 2005).…”

Section: Barataria Bay and Lake Pontchartrainsupporting

confidence: 90%

Surge and Wave Modeling for the Louisiana 2012 Coastal Master Plan

Cobell

Zhao

Roberts

et al. 2013

Journal of Coastal Research

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Cobell, Z.; Zhao, H.; Roberts, H.J.; Clark, F.R.The goal of the study was to evaluate various coastal restoration and protection projects and the associated benefits for reductions in storm surge and wave height. Efforts in numerical modeling have been made to create a database of storm surge and wave responses to a set of hypothetical storms under current and various future conditions. The ADvanced CIRCulation (ADCIRC) and the Unstructured Simulating WAves Nearshore (UnSWAN) models were selected for this study. A coarser version of the state-of-the-art, southern Louisiana, unstructured mesh was developed to reduce computational overhead while maintaining critical hydraulic features. Model outputs were reviewed and analyzed from coastwide and onshore-transect points of view. The potential benefits of restoration and protection projects proposed in the Master Plan were examined by comparing Future without Action outputs to the Master Plan outputs. Hurricane protection projects, such as levees, provide remarkable protection at their leesides but increase and redistribute surge water at their front sides. Narrow, restored landscapes, such as barrier islands or ridges, may provide wave attenuation to some extent but, in many cases, provide minimal benefits in surge level reduction. Larger-scale restoration projects, such as sediment diversions, can result in land accretion and enhance vegetation coverage, thus resulting in notable benefits associated with damping waves and storm surge and ultimately reducing risk for inland communities. ADDITIONAL INDEX WORDS: Coastal Louisiana, storm surge, waves, restoration and protection, numerical modeling.

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Section: Barataria Bay and Lake Pontchartrainsupporting

confidence: 90%

Surge and Wave Modeling for the Louisiana 2012 Coastal Master Plan

Cobell

Zhao

Roberts

et al. 2013

Journal of Coastal Research

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“…Comparison to a model run in which morphological change was 'switched off', revealed that barrier island overflow (resulting from breaching and overwash) contributed 0.75 m to the total water level of the bay. Grzegorzewski et al (2011) also deployed a modelling approach to quantify the potential impact of restoring the Plaquemines and Ship Island barriers in the Gulf of Mexico. They suggest that, if restored, additional water flow over the barrier crest during a surge event would decrease by 40% and 60% respectively compared to an unrestored scenario.…”

Section: Simultaneous Erosion-flooding Eventsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The interactive relationship between coastal erosion and flood risk

Pollard

Spencer

Brooks

2018

Progress in Physical Geography: Earth and Environment

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Coastal erosion and flooding are hazards that, when combined with facilitative pathways and vulnerable receptors, represent sources of coastal risk. Erosion and flooding risks are often analysed separately owing to complex relationships between driving processes, morphological response and risk receptors. We argue that these risks should be considered jointly and illustrate this through discussion of three ‘expressions’ of this interactive relationship: coastal morphology modifies flood hazard; future flood risk depends on changing shoreline position; and the simultaneous occurrence of erosion–flooding events. Some critical thoughts are offered on the general applicability of these expressions and the implications for coastal risk management policy.

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“…The ultimate and most severe morphological consequence of storms is complete barrier disintegration. It can take place from the seaward as well as the landward side of low-resilience barriers (e.g., Grzegorzewski et al, 2011), and has recently been documented at the Chandeleur Islands in Louisiana. During Hurricane Katrina, the islands became fully submerged, and some 85% of the sand stripped from their beaches and dunes was deposited where it could no longer nourish the islands as part of post-storm recovery .…”

Section: Inundation Regimementioning

confidence: 99%