A MULTI-SCALE MONITORING PROGRAM TO MEASURE COASTAL CHANGE, NORTHEAST COASTAL AND BARRIER NETWORK, NPS

The US National Park Service has established a rigorous long-term program of monitoring coastal topographical change in the parks of the Northeast Coastal and Barrier Network. Protocols have been developed to collect data at differing spatial scales, ranging from the entire coastline length to "areas of special concern". Analyses incorporate event-driven, seasonal, and long-term variability in dune/beach topography. The products of this monitoring program provide data sets that define elements of geomorphological variation in a geotemporal matrix.

One scale of the program uses sub-meter accuracy GPS equipment to track a feature-based, one-dimensional (1-D) shoreline position along the park's ocean shoreline. A second scale uses GPS RTK equipment to collect two-dimensional (2-D) dune-beach profiles with 2-cm accuracy. The profiles are tied to an array of survey monuments distributed throughout the park. A third scale uses GPS RTK equipment to collect high-resolution three-dimensional (3-D) topographical surveys to create Digital Elevation Models in "areas of special concern" within each park. In addition to the field data gathering, 1-D, 2-D and 3-D data-sets will be extracted from LiDAR which is acquired on a 2-year interval. These data sets generate metrics on the geotemporal cross-shore and alongshore variability within the parks.

The monitoring program provides critical information on the spatial and temporal morphodynamical evolution of the Park’s coastal system. It establishes a mechanism for the systematic tracking of morphological responses operating at differing scales. The program provides timely and scientific information to managers on the 1-D, 2-D, and 3-D dynamic nature of coastlines.