Shoreline Changes and Their Impacts on Tourism: A Case Study of Sam Son City, Thanh Hoa Province, Vietnam

Abstract

Sam Son has over 17 kilometers of coastline, making it advantageous for marine tourism and resort tourism. However, various types of research have confirmed that climate change has impacted on tourism activities. The change in shoreline can have a significant impact on tourism infrastructure, as it can alter the accessibility, safety, and attractiveness of coastal destinations. The aim of the paper is to analyze the shoreline change rate over 33 years (1989−2022) and its impacts on tourism in Sam Son. Multi-temporal satellite images were used to extract shorelines, and Digital Shoreline Analysis Systems (DSAS) was used to detect the rate of shoreline change. The results indicated that the shoreline change of Sam Son can be divided two parts, including the Hoi estuary zone and the Do River estuary area. In the Hoi estuary, the erosion rates range from -2.22 m/yr to -40.32 m/yr. Buiding FLC Sam Son for tourism is one of the causes of loss of sedimentation in this area. Additionally, in the Do River estuary, the rate of accretion has significantly increased, reaching to 9.7 m/yr. This phenomenon of sediment accumulation is the foundation for building resorts to serve tourism in Sam Son.