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Modelling of estuaries
Published in P. Novak, V. Guinot, A. Jeffrey, D.E. Reeve, Hydraulic Modelling – an Introduction, 2010
P. Novak, V. Guinot, A. Jeffrey, D.E. Reeve
Tides and surges are similar wave-like phenomena. However, tides are caused by gravitational forces due to the earth, moon and sun and are predictable to a high degree of accuracy, whereas surges are driven by the weather and are much less predictable. Storm surges are due to a combination of sea-surface pressure changes, wind stress and wave set-up close to the shore where the waves break. Tidal constituents are now explained briefly, but for details the interested reader is referred to specialist texts on tides (e.g. Cartwright (1999), Defant (1961), Godin (1972)).
Climate adaptation of Canadian floodplain maps
Published in Wim Uijttewaal, Mário J. Franca, Daniel Valero, Victor Chavarrias, Clàudia Ylla Arbós, Ralph Schielen, Alessandra Crosato, River Flow 2020, 2020
For coastal floodplain mapping, information on designated design water levels is derived through complex numerical modelling and detailed data analyses. Historically, the approach has been to sum up tide and selected low frequency storm surge elevations, and add the influence of wave actions and characteristics, where applicable. A freeboard allowance (e.g. 0.6 m) is considered to account for uncertainties from local conditions and unaccounted for factors. To address the influence of climate change, expected sea level rise, adjusted to local conditions, is considered. Where applicable, especially in estuaries and deltas, the influence of freshwater contributions from rivers is also considered to come up with designated water levels. Storm surge is the rise in water level caused by a severe storm, such as a hurricane or northeaster (FEMA 2005). The advancing surge combined with wind and normal tides increases the effective sea level and can create extensive storm damage. However, determining projected changes to storm surge characteristics are quite challenging. Therefore, additional research and modelling is needed to better understand changes to the frequency and magnitude of storm surge and its complex interactions with the rising sea level and impact on coastal structures. Local features, such as land subsidence and uplift, shoreline geometry, wave exposure, and wind actions need to be considered to improve accuracy of design water levels. Almost all Canadian studies on coastal floodplain mapping have targeted a future time period (e.g. 2050, 2100 or 2200) for preparing future inundation maps. With the 2017 Paris Agreement on climate change, the focus has now been shifted to specific mean global warming targets (e.g. 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, or 2°C). As a result of this shift, there is a strong need to revise these studies and prepare new coastal floodplain maps.
Effects of major hurricanes in Atlantic Canada from 2003 to 2018
Published in Chongfu Huang, Zoe Nivolianitou, Risk Analysis Based on Data and Crisis Response Beyond Knowledge, 2019
Luana Souza Almeida, Floris Goerlandt*, Ronald Pelot
Four hurricanes were studied: Juan, Noel, Earl and Igor. The cause and effect analysis showed that toppled trees and flooding are the major causes that block roads during the emergency response phase. Storm surges can cause severe damage in the coastal areas, especially in ports and marinas. In terms of supply chain response, an assessment map based on blocked roads during past hurricanes is suggested in order to predict different possible paths to flow emergency resources such as water and food.
Extreme values of storm surge elevation in Hangzhou Bay
Published in Ships and Offshore Structures, 2020
Guilin Liu, Zhikang Gao, Baiyu Chen, Hanliang Fu, Song Jiang, Liping Wang, Ge Wang, Zhengshou Chen
A storm surge is a potentially devastating rise or fall in the sea surface, which is caused by powerful atmospheric disturbance, such as tropical and temperate cyclones. In some places, cold air outbreak can also cause resembling storm surge process. Surges can lead to a large loss of human life, destruction of homes and civil infrastructure, and disruption of trade, fisheries, and industry. (See Figure 1). For example in 1999, a severe storm surge occurred in Gironde Bay, France, resulting in massive flooding that shut down the nearby Blayais nuclear power plant. Therefore, height of storm surge is one of the major design parameters for a coastal city plans and builds a nuclear power plants near the coast (Lorente et al. 2015; Weaver and Slinn 2015).
Simulating the spatial impacts of a coastal barrier in Galveston Island, Texas: a three-dimensional urban modeling approach
Published in Geomatics, Natural Hazards and Risk, 2023
Zhenhang Cai, Galen Newman, Jaekyung Lee, Xinyue Ye, David Retchless, Lei Zou, Youngjib Ham
The Houston-Galveston area is more flood-vulnerable compared to other parts of Texas due to its geographic location and urban development patterns. It is a coastal area with dense industrial land uses that is experiencing intense urban development (Zahran et al. 2006). Adding to those vulnerabilities, the abundant amount of industrial land uses can cause chemical pollutant releases, should any of the facilities become damaged by flood events or storm surge (Burleson et al. 2015). In such cases, the chemical contaminants are carried away through surface runoff, washed through neighboring communities, and may be eventually released into the ocean (Atoba Kayode et al. 2018).
Understanding spatiotemporal patterns of typhoon storm surge disasters based on their tropical cyclone track clusters in China
Published in Geomatics, Natural Hazards and Risk, 2021
Ke Wang, Yongsheng Yang, Genserik Reniers, Quanyi Huang
A typhoon storm surge (i.e., tropical storm surge or hurricane surge) is an abnormal rise in the seawater level caused by strong winds and sudden pressure changes typically associated with tropical cyclones (Grinsted et al. 2013; Needham et al. 2013). Coupled with an astronomical tide and wave, a typhoon storm surge disaster (TSSD) may occur (State Oceanic Administration of China 2017) and can severely impact (e.g., coastal flooding) coastal areas (Cheung et al. 2003; Rodrigo et al. 2018). According to the Bulletin of China Marine Disaster (1989-2018), TSSDs are the most destructive marine disasters in China, causing losses higher than the total direct economic losses from all other marine disasters. In 2018, direct economic losses from TSSDs accounted for approximately 90% of total marine disaster losses in China. Furthermore, 14 administrative coastal regions at the province level in China have been affected by TSSDs. A sea-level rise (Overpeck et al. 2006; Rahmstorf 2007) and possibly more intense tropical cyclones (Knutson et al. 2010) under climate change are likely to increase the TSSD risk (Dasgupta et al. 2009; Hallegatte et al. 2013; Lloyd et al. 2016). According to the MNRC (2019), China’s coastal sea level will rise by 68‒166 mm in the next 30 years. Most TSSDs in China have been caused by tropical cyclones generated in the northwest Pacific (Ling et al. 2011). Yasuda et al. (2014) predicted that the intensity of tropical cyclones would likely increase in the northwest Pacific in the future. Additionally, the coastal population and economy are growing (Neumann et al. 2015; Gao and Wang 2020; Winther et al. 2020), making the coastal areas more vulnerable to TSSDs (Helderop and Grubesic 2019). National Bureau of Statistics (2019) reports that the coastal population in mainland China rose by 17% from 2000 to 2018. Hence, a better understanding of TSSD spatiotemporal patterns is vital for disaster mitigation in China.