Spatial Analysis of Dune Crest Mobility, Fire Island National Seashore, New York
Psuty NP, Allen JR, Starcher R. 1988. Spatial Analysis of Dune Crest Mobility, Fire Island National Seashore, New York. Journal of Coastal Research (JCR). (Special Issue No. 3):115-120
Fire Island, New York, is located along the southern margin of Long Island. It extends NE to SW and is exposed to swell waves coming from the east and south while being protected from the severe northeasterly storms. It is a barrier island on a low meso-tidal coast. Net sediment transport in the nearshore zone is on the order of 400,000 cubic meters/year and is from east to west. The island is occupied by eighteen communities interspersed among holdings of the National Park Service as well as parks of other jurisdictional levels. Coastal erosion is a major concern of the inhabitants and approaches to "stabilization" are complicated by the existence of so many political units on the island. Both the Fire Island National Seashore and the separate communities have decided on using the coastal dune zone as the basis for management. Specifically, a dune crestline has been established and ordinances emplaced relative to the crestline. Among the regulations is a 12 m (40') buffer zone that exists to the lee of the crestline, within which all construction is prohibited and all reconstruction is reviewed. The dune crestline has been identified on aerial photos taken in 1976, 1981, and 1986. The same methodology has been used to conduct the identification on each flight and each crestline has been registered to a common map base. One output of the mapping is a comparison of the position of the crestline in the five-year intervals and a determination of the rates and magnitudes of change.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Psuty, Norbert; Allen, James; Starcher, Robert
- Units
- CACO , FIIS
- Keywords
- Beach Dynamics, Coastal Geomorphology, crestline, Distribution, dune crestline, dune stabilization, Dunes, mobility