Breaching of barrier islands can adversely impact society by severing infrastructure, destroying private properties, and altering water quality in back bays and estuaries. This study provides a scheme that assesses the relative vulnerability of a barrier island to breach during storms. Dauphin Island, Alabama was selected for this study because it has a well documented history of island breaches and extensive geological and geomorphic data. To assess the vulnerability of the island, we defined several variables contributing to the risk of breaching: island geology, breaching history, and island topography and geomorphology. These variables were combined to form a breaching index (BI) value for cross island computational bins, each bin every 50 m in the alongshore direction. Results suggest the eastern section of Dauphin Island has the lowest risk of breaching with the remaining portion of the island having a moderate to high risk of breaching. Two reaches in the western section of the island were found to be particularly vulnerable due primarily to their minimal cross-sectional dimensions.
Citation Information
Publication Year | 2007 |
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Title | Barrier island vulnerability to breaching: a case study on Dauphin Island, Alabama |
DOI | 10.1061/40926(239)157 |
Authors | Mark Hansen, Asbury H. Sallenger |
Publication Type | Conference Paper |
Publication Subtype | Conference Paper |
Index ID | 70031305 |
Record Source | USGS Publications Warehouse |
USGS Organization | Coastal and Marine Geology Program |