Grand Bay Estuarine Shoreline Change

Shoreline change rates are calculated by measuring the distance between each shoreline, and the time between the surveys.

Positive shoreline-change rates, or linear regression rates (LRR), indicate that the shoreline is accreting, or gaining land. While negative values indicate that the shoreline is eroding, or moving inland and losing land. Within our study area, very few locations are accreting, while the majority of the marsh has been eroding since 1848.

Shoreline change rates help identify locations that are at risk of erosion due to sea level rise, climate change, or storms. For more information on shoreline change rates and how they are mapped, take a look at this Geonarrative by Terrano and Smith (2022) or this paper by Smith and others (2021).