Coastal Shoreline Monitoring in the Arctic Network National Parklands

Wald, Eric; Miller, Scott

Coastal environments within Bering Land Bridge National Preserve (BELA) and Cape Krusenstern National Monument (CAKR) are experiencing rapid environmental changes that are observable in the form of coastal erosion, bluff retreat, beach accretion, sediment deposition and permafrost melting. Coastal change will be monitoried primarily through remote sensing of the coastline. Remote sensing methods will involve repeated acquisition (approximately every 5-10 years) and analysis of finely detailed imagery. The total shoreline in ARCN, including bay and barrier island ecosystems, is approximately 450 km (250 miles). This is the third largest block of coastline that the NPS manages. Nearshore coastal waters and shoreline habitats include subtidal zones, sandy shores, barrier spits and islands, lagoons, bays and inlets, tundra bluffs, dune systems, rocky bluffs, deltas, and wetlands. These habitats are critical for bird nesting, seal haul-outs, potential denning sites, freshwater and anadromous fish, and migratory stopover sites for marine mammals and birds. As a result, the coastal zone has a long history of and is still very important for subsistence fishing, egg gathering, and hunting of waterfowl and marine mammals. Many hunting and fishing camps and travel routes associated with subsistence activities are in the coastal zone of BELA and CAKR. Coastal change consists primarily of coastal erosion and bluff retreat, as well as less common beach accretion, deposition of sediments during extreme storms, and modification to inlets and lagoons. A particular concern is that coastal ecosystems are changing rapidly with arctic warming and other environmental stressors (Arctic Climate Impact Assessment 2005). Coastal and nearshore environments in BELA and CAKR are experiencing dramatic changes (Manley et al. 2007), with impacts on a variety of nearshore marine, terrestrial, and freshwater habitats. Coastal erosion directly impacts beach geomorphology and nearshore ecosystems. Bluff erosion causes loss of terrestrial habitat. Changes in sediment erosion and deposition can lead to capture of thaw-lake basins, migration of barrier inlets, flooding or closure of inlets, and other modifications to freshwater habitats. Release of sediment and organic carbon alters nutrient fluxes in nearshore marine and lagoon ecosystems (Jorgenson and Brown 2005). Protected by sea ice for several months each year, the fragile coastal zone may change rapidly with Arctic warming, permafrost melting, sea-level rise, lengthening of the summer sea-ice free season, and changes to storm frequency and severity (Arctic Climate Impact Assessment 2005, Rachold et al. 2005). Coastal change is one of the most observable and sensitive indicators of environmental change for the Arctic. The Coastal Erosion protocol will be linked to other protocols including Climate and Weather, Snow and Ice, Point Source Human Effects, Terrestrial Vegetation and Soils, Bird Assemblages, Stream Communities and Ecosystems, Lake Communities and Ecosystems, Lagoon Communities and Ecosystems, Surface Water Dynamics and Distribution, and Sea Ice.

Coastal Shoreline Monitoring in the Arctic Network National Parklands

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