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The development of the USGS Total Water Level and Coastal Change forecast in the Great Lakes was featured in a story on UWWM 89.7, a National Public Radio affiliate in Milwaukee, WI.

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Lake superior beach with sand, dune, driftwood, grass and trees
Coastal communities on the Great Lakes may experience coastal change, including dune erosion. The USGS and NOAA are developing the Total Water and Coastal Change Forecast at sites like this one in Ontonagon, Michigan to provide communities with real-time information for decision making.

The USGS/NOAA Total Water Level and Coastal Change forecast extends along 4,700 km of U.S. Atlantic and Gulf of America sandy coastline. The forecast describes the potential for dune erosion, overwash, and beach flooding (inundation) due to waves and water levels. An effort by the USGS Coastal Change Hazards Team is underway to extend the forecast to the Great Lakes and include the effects of ice on wave runup at the shoreline. Meg Palmsten, SPCMSC Research Oceanographer, was interviewed by NPR and gave this radio story, which describes the forecast development and explains possible applications of the forecast for communities along the coast of the Great Lakes.

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