Accessing impacts of climate change-driven sea level rise on hydrodynamics and sediment dynamics along Ba Lang beaches in Nha Trang Bay, Khanh Hoa, Vietnam

Abstract

The Ba Lang sand beaches, located north of the Nha Trang Bay in Central Vietnam, are famous tourist attractions. However, they are experiencing shoreline and coastal erosion retreat, which is attributed to natural causes (such as tropical depressions, storms, and monsoons) as well as human impacts (such as hydropower generation, sand dredging, and coastal works). According to the forecast of the Vietnam Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, global climate change will cause the sea level to rise by 74 cm along the coast from the Dai Lanh Cape to the Ke Ga Cape (including the Ba Lang beaches) by the end of this century in the representative concentration pathway (RCP) 8.5 scenario. Sea level rise (SLR) due to global climate change is expected to aggravate the coastal erosion and shoreline retreat problems. In this study, coupled numerical models with the spectral wave module (MIKE 21 SW), hydrodynamic module (MIKE 21 HD), and sand transport module (MIKE 21 ST) in the MIKE 21 package were used to simulate waves, current fields, and sediment dynamics along the Ba Lang beaches considering the impact of SLR. These models were calibrated with the field data measured in December 2016. The results showed that SLR caused the wave height to increase and reduced the current speed and total sediment load in monsoon conditions. The increase in wave height was even intensified under the joint impact of SLR and extreme events.