Development of the geomorphological map for Gateway National Recreation Area (post-Hurricane Sandy): (1) Principal characteristics and components and (2) metrics of change

Psuty, Norbert; Schmelz, William; Greenberg, Joshua; Spahn, Andrea

This report incorporates the geomorphological map, its philosophical underpinnings, legend descriptions, and the GIS data layers for the three Units of Gateway National Recreation Area, Sandy Hook Unit (New Jersey), Staten Island Unit (New York), and Jamaica Bay Unit (New York) in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, October 2012. The theme of the map follows the current scientific organization of geomorphological mapping that includes morphometrics, causative processes, and evolutionary stages. Surface form was interpreted from a variety of data sources that include recent orthophotos, recent Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data sets, and spatial information on soils and vegetation. The archival information was augmented with field visits. The geomorphological features of the Gateway site include: 1) a portion of a glacial terminal moraine; 2) coastal topography that was created during an early phase of coastal barrier spit / barrier island development; 3) coastal topography that developed with the downdrift extension of the barrier spit / barrier island systems; 4) coastal topography associated with the estuarine margins of embayments situated inland of the developing barrier spits / barrier islands; 5) topographical modifications created by Hurricane Sandy; and 6) anthropogenic modifications to the natural topography, consisting of excavation as well as accumulation. The geomorphological maps of the Units and their subdivisions and the map legend portray the spatial and temporal association of the surface features created during the several stages of landscape development, as well as the broad anthropogenic modifications of the surface. These processes continue to influence development of the landscape and, as a result, this map will serve to identify a stage in the evolution of the geomorphology at Gateway National Recreation Area. Many of the geomorphological features incorporated on these maps were affected by processes and responses associated with Hurricane Sandy in October 2012, and a comparison with a map representation of the pre-storm geomorphological configuration (2010) is tabulated. Thus, this report is organized into two sections: • Part 1: Post-Hurricane Sandy geomorphological maps of Gateway National Recreation Area. • Part 2: Quantification of the dimensions of change in the magnitude and distribution of geomorphological features as a result of Hurricane Sandy. The several geomorphological maps are viewable utilizing a GIS as a full compilation of all of the data layers as well as user specified combinations of the data. Each of the map layers contained in this report meets the standards of Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) compliant metadata. The full set of organized data layers is available from the Geologic Resources Division, National Park Service, PO Box 25287, Denver, Colorado 80225 or via the Geologic Resources Inventory publications page http://go.nps.gov/gripubs. Cartographic representations of the several geomorphological map datasets are presented within two appendices to Part 1 of this report. Appendix II contains page-sized portrayals of the Post-Hurricane Sandy Geomorphological Map datasets, whereas Appendix I contains the 2010 Geomorphological Map datasets that were used in combination with the post-storm datasets to derive the quantifications of change provided within Part 2.

Development of the geomorphological map for Gateway National Recreation Area (post-Hurricane Sandy): (1) Principal characteristics and components and (2) metrics of change

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