Assessment of potential beach erosion risk and impact of coastal zone development: a case study on Bongpo–Cheonjin Beach

Abstract

In many parts, coastal erosion is severe due to human-induced coastal zone development and storm impacts, in addition to climate change. In this study, the beach erosion risk was defined, followed by a quantitative assessment of potential beach erosion risk based on three components associated with the watershed, coastal zone development, and episodic storms. On an embayed beach, the background erosion due to development in the watershed affects sediment supply from rivers to the beach, while alongshore redistribution of sediment transport caused by construction of a harbor induces shoreline reshaping, for which the parabolic-type equilibrium bay shape model is adopted. To evaluate beach erosion during storms, the return period (frequency) of a storm occurrence was evaluated from long-term beach survey data conducted four times per year. Beach erosion risk was defined, and assessment was carried out for each component, from which the results were combined to construct a combined potential erosion risk curve to be used in the environmental impact assessment. Finally, the proposed method was applied to Bongpo–Cheonjin Beach in Gangwon-do, South Korea, with the support of a series of aerial photographs taken from 1972 to 2017 and beach survey data obtained from the period commencing in 2010. The satisfactory outcomes derived from this study are expected to benefit eroding beaches elsewhere.