Shoreline morphology changes along the Eastern Coast of India, Andhra Pradesh by using geospatial technology

Abstract

Shoreline changes on account of global climate change and sea level rise is one of the major problems along the coastlines in different continents of the world. This study was carried out along the coastlines of Andhra Pradesh state in India using multi-temporal satellite images from 1973 to 2015 period. Long-term coastal erosion and accretion rate over a period of 42 years has calculated using Digital Shoreline Analysis System and prepared shoreline maps by using GIS-Software. End point rate (EPR) statistical method is applied to estimate the shoreline change rate. Various coastal parameters like sea level rise, geomorphology, elevation and coastal slope were used to find out the interactive relationship between the physical parameters and shoreline changes in the area. The study revealed that the coastal changes are more dominant in Krishna and Godavari Deltaic plain. The average erosion and accretion rate observed in the Krishna Godavari delta was 10.63 and 17.29 m per year respectively. The study indicated that, climatic changes and fluvial process are playing key role in changing shoreline positions. The study exhibited that elevation and slope are played intense role in the shoreline positional change. The present study demonstrates that combined use of satellite imagery and EPR statistical method as an accurate and reliable method for shoreline change analysis.