STORM MORPHODYNAMICS AND DECADAL EVOLUTION OF BEACHES IN MODIFIED ESTUARIES AND BAYS

Abstract

Estuaries and bays have a long history as important locations for humanity, where societies and civilizations have thrived. The many sandy beaches within estuaries and bays (BEBs), often in urban environments, provide critical habitats and shoreline protection, as well as being important for recreation, often in urban environments. Due to their historic importance, many estuaries are subject to anthropogenic modification including: (1) dredging; (2) construction of ports and other infrastructure leading to “hard shorelines”; (3) urban sprawl causing encroachment of natural shorelines including BEBs, and wetlands such as mangroves or saltmarshes; (4) contamination and overfishing, leading for example to the ecosystem collapse of oyster reefs and loss of their shoreline protection, although there are efforts internationally at restoration to improve water quality and shoreline protection. Here we present selected examples of BEBs located in modified estuaries and bays, highlighting their morphological diversity.