Monitoring and Modelling Coastal Vulnerability and Mitigation Proposal for an Archaeological Site (Kaulonia, Southern Italy)

Abstract

This paper presents a Coastal Vulnerability Assessment (CVA) of a microtidal beach located on the Ionian Sea in Calabria region (southern Italy) in order to examine the influence of the different run-up equations on CVA score and propose mitigation measures for the most vulnerable parts of the beach. The coastal area has been severely eroded by extreme wave storms, which have also damaged important archaeological structures located on a nearby cliff. A typical 1 year return period (T r ) storm, associated with the recent criticalities, was chosen to test the different run-up formulas (Holman (1986), Mase (1989) Stockdon et al. (2006) and Poate et al. (2016)) on a number of beach profiles in order to check the sensitivity of the CVA calculation with regard to the different run-up equations. The obtained results provide evidence that different run-up levels often give rise to different CVA scores. Based on vulnerability results, some mitigation measures have been proposed for the beach in front of the archaeological area, based on submerged detached breakwater and an adherent gabion wall for the cliff defence.

Statistical Deviations in Shoreline Detection Obtained with Direct and Remote Observations

“…In addition to using UAVs in beach survey [27,28], video monitoring can provide a remotely-sensed measurement, fixed at a secure location (e.g., a tower or high-point), with the capability of acquiring imagery at a frequency ranging from fractions of seconds to hours. The technology is relatively low-cost, but the main issue is the processing method, especially the image rectification process, considering that the imagery is strongly oblique and relies on a number of GCPs (Ground Control Points) for finding the best geometry solutions.…”

Shoreline Rotation Analysis of Embayed Beaches by Means of In Situ and Remote Surveys

“…Coastal management should include an evidence-based understanding of natural processes such as erosion to deliver sustainable coastal development that ensures economic activities and preserves natural beach environments [2]. Shoreline survey can be generally performed, by remote sensing [3][4][5], UAV [6] and video monitoring [7,8], which was already introduced by Aarninkhof [9], Turner et al [10] and Holman and Stanley [11]; the final aim is the assessment of coastal vulnerability and risk which has been performed in different contexts [12][13][14][15]. Embayed beaches are more common than generally thought and represent about 50% of the world's coastline [16].…”

Coastal Vulnerability to Erosion Using a Multi-Criteria Index: A Case Study of the Xiamen Coast

“…The components parallel to coastline cause the sediment to be transported alongshore. The vertical components of the coastline drive the sediment to cross-shore transport [31,51,66,67].…”

“…Therefore, the assessment of coastal vulnerability to erosion requires an understanding of the impact of artificial coast on the coastal vulnerability to erosion. Differences are observed in the selection of evaluation indexes for different study scales, and the contents and computations of the same indexes on different scales of an evaluation system vary [29][30][31][32]. There are several models can be used to assess coastal vulnerability.…”