texas student involvement in coastal monitoring studies · based learning experience through...

Tiffany L. Caudle and Jeffrey G. PaineBureau of Economic Geology

Jackson School of GeosciencesThe University of Texas at Austin

American Shore and Beach Preservation Association National Coastal Conference

October 2013

Texas Student Involvement in Coastal Monitoring Studies

Texas High School Coastal Monitoring Program Sponsors

• Provide high school students with an inquiry-based learning experience through investigation of beach changes.

• Increase public awareness and understanding of coastal processes and hazards.

• Obtain a better understanding of the relationship between coastal processes, beach morphology, and shoreline change, and make data and findings available for solving coastal management problems.

THSCMP Goals

Student Collected Data• Topographic transect oriented perpendicular to

the shoreline– measured from the same starting point landward of

the foredune and oriented in the same direction.

• Estimates of processes acting on the beach– wind direction and speed; wave direction, height,

and period; and longshore current direction and speed

• GPS survey of the vegetation line and shoreline– quantitative data on the position and trends of the

shoreline and vegetation line

Topographic Profile

Determine vertical changebetween front and back Emory rods using siting level or horizon

Measure horizontal distance between Emory rods

Wind and Wave ObservationsWind meter

Longshore Current Measurement

Shoreline and VegetationLine Mapping with GPS

SCIENTIFIC RESULTS

THSCMP Studies

Hurricane Impacts• 1998 TS Frances• 2005 Hurricane Rita• 2008 Hurricane Ike

BEG 02 Hurricane Ike Impact

4/23/200810/7/2008

Shoreline: -53 mVegetation line: -56 m

Pre-storm data point was 1.14 m above post-storm beach

BEG 02 Recovery

5/18/2010 5/22/2013

0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140Distance from Monument (m)

0

1

2

3

Hei

ght a

bove

NAV

D88

(m)

2008 Oct 72009 Sep 162010 May 182011 Jan 212011 May 182011 Sep 232013 Jan 24

vertical exaggeration = 10:1

BEG02 (Galveston Island State Park)Datum Reset

South Padre Island Beach Nourishment

2/2/2012

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

20

40

60

80

100

120

Sho

relin

e &

veg

etat

ion

line

dist

ance

from

land

war

d da

tum

(m)

40

60

80

100

120

Vol

ume

(m3 /m

)

vegetationshorelinevolume

SPI02 (South Padre Island)volume, shoreline, and vegetation line change

South Padre Island Beach Nourishment

10/3/2008 9/26/20122007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Sho

relin

e &

veg

etat

ion

line

dist

ance

from

land

war

d da

tum

(m)

0

20

40

60

Vol

ume

(m3 /m

)

vegetationshorelinevolume

SPI08 South Padre Islandvolume, shoreline, and vegetation line change

Mustang Island Dune Expansion

9/30/2010

Mustang Island Dune Excavation

10/3/201310/25/2012

0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180Distance from monument (m)

0

2

4

6

Hei

ght a

bove

NA

VD

88 (m

)

2010 Jan 212011 Sep 152012 Oct 252013 Jan 312013 May 2

MUI01 Mustang Island

vertical exaggeration 10:1

Matagorda Peninsula

Matagorda Peninsula East Jetty Impact

Year Shoreline Distance from Monument (m)2006 71.552009 108.812011 116.032012 150.782013 156.15

2006-2013 shoreline change rate:+12 m/year

SCIENTIFIC RESULTS

BEG Projects

Geotubes Beach Widths

9/2/2003

Verification of 2007 Shoreline Position

Verification of Lidar Mapped Shoreline and Potential Vegetation Line

Summary• THSCMP provides Texas students with a real-world

learning experience.

• THSCMP delivers valuable data to the State of Texas for use by students and teachers, scientists, coastal managers, and the general public.

• Data collected by THSCMP has proven beneficial to BEG researchers and coastal managers in numerous scientific studies.

• Future data collection will further enhance our understanding of the Texas coast as well as continue to educate middle and high school students on coastal issues.

Tiffany L. Caudletiffany.caudle@beg.utexas.edu

Bureau of Economic GeologyJohn A. and Katherine Jackson School of Geosciences

The University of Texas at Austin

Thank you!

THSCMP Websitehttp://coastal.beg.utexas.edu/thscmp/