UNC CSI to Host Lecture on NC’s Changing Coastline

Posted By Matt Artz on February 13, 2017

The UNC Coastal Studies Institute (UNC CSI) is hosting a lecture on North Carolina’s changing coastline as part of its “Science on the Sound” lecture series.

This series, held monthly, highlights research on coastal topics and issues in northeast North Carolina.

This month, the program will feature Dr. Reide Corbett, Professor in the department of Geological Sciences at East Carolina University. Dr. Corbett’s presentation, entitled “Water, Water Everywhere: North Carolina’s Changing Coastline and Increased Vulnerability”, will highlight his work documenting and studying North Carolina’s changing coastline and the increased vulnerability of the region to coastal hazards.

The program will be held at 6:00PM on Thursday, February 23 at the UNC Coastal Studies Institute located at 850 NC 345 in Wanchese, NC. The presentation is free and the public is welcomed and encouraged to attend.

Eastern North Carolina is home to the Outer Banks and the expansive Albemarle-Pamlico estuarine system, the second largest estuary in the United States.

The morphology of this area has changed dramatically over the last few centuries in response to natural forces and anthropogenic activities. The rate of sea-level rise along the US Atlantic coast has increased throughout the 20^th century.

While there is widespread agreement that it will continue to accelerate during the 21^st century, great uncertainty surrounds its magnitude and geographic distribution. Along NC’s coast, a recent analysis of historical shoreline data, specifically aerial photographs from 1947, 1974 and 2007 in Dare County, reveals a very dynamic system.

These data coupled with other datasets and analyses have been employed to understand hazard vulnerability of this ecologically and economically important region. Roanoke Island, NC, site of the first English colony in the New World, is one location showing variable, but locally dramatic change and vulnerability.

Data from this area show some marshes eroding at rates exceeding 5 meters per year, and much of the island is at risk to future impacts. Additional research is underway to explore controlling processes, geological responses and management challenges.

This program will be streamed live at http://coastalstudiesinstitute.org/outreach/live-streaming, and the online viewing audience will be able to ask the presenter questions via an online chat room.