Long-term Impacts on Global Coastlines Unaffected by Changes in Waves and Storm Surges, Study Reveals

 According to a recent study, changes in ocean wave and storm conditions over the past 30 years have not resulted in long-term impacts on sandy coastlines worldwide.

A new study, published in Scientific Reports, reveals that changes in ocean wave and storm conditions have not caused long-term impacts on sandy coastlines over the past 30 years. The research utilized data from global satellite and model studies to investigate the potential influence of wave conditions on coastal stability. While climate change-driven variations in waves, storm surge, and sea level rise are expected to result in shoreline position changes along most sandy coasts worldwide, the study found no direct evidence of long-term coastline recession due to changes in waves and storm surge. Led by University of Melbourne PhD candidate Mandana Ganavati and Professor Ian Young, the research team, in collaboration with colleagues from IHE Delft Institute for Water Education and Deltares of the Netherlands, examined shoreline position changes and compared them to changes in wave and storm surge properties along the same coastlines. Professor Young emphasized that while shorelines can be dynamic and responsive to short to medium-term wave and storm surge events, the observed changes in waves and storm surge over the last three decades do not appear to have a significant long-term impact on global coastlines. Ms. Ganavati pointed out that climate change-induced increases in wind speeds and ocean waves are commonly assumed to affect shorelines globally. However, the study's data suggests that other factors such as sediment supply from rivers, sediment transport gradients, and human coastal management likely play a more substantial role in altering shoreline position over the same period. Despite the projected impacts of climate change and mean sea level rise leading to potential coastal recession and socio-economic losses along sandy coasts in the future, the available datasets from the past 30 years do not indicate a clear linkage between long-term shoreline change and changes in waves and storm surge.