Spatio-temporal evolutionary characteristics of sandy shorelines on a typical island under the influence of human activities

Abstract

Long-term morphological changes in beaches are crucial for developing and managing coastal zones and have significant implications for coastal disaster prevention and mitigation, as well as sustainable development of sandy shorelines under global climate change conditions. Pingtan Island, located on the west coast of the Taiwan Strait, about 40 km south of the Minjiang River Estuary, features a 70 km -long sandy shoreline, and its developmental history exhibits distinct phases. This study analyzes the spatio-temporal evolutionary characteristics of sandy shorelines on Pingtan Island over the past 35 years by utilizing continuous satellite imagery from 1990 to 2024 and the CoastSat global shoreline mapping tool. The primary controlling factors influencing the evolution of sandy shorelines are also identified in this study. The results indicate that (1) driven by variations in coastal dynamic conditions, the evolution of the sandy shoreline along Pingtan Island exhibits notable spatial differences, with erosion intensities significantly greater in the northern and eastern regions of the island than in the southeastern and southern areas. (2) The sandy shoreline of Pingtan Island demonstrates clear phased evolutionary characteristics: from 1990 to 2010, the shoreline generally experienced erosion, with a higher erosion rate observed from 1990 to 1999, followed by a deceleration in erosion from 2000 to 2010. After 2010, the shoreline tended toward stability, which was related to changes in sediment discharge in the Minjiang River estuary. (3) Following an adaptation period of 5–15 years after sediment discharge from adjacent rivers stabilized, a new dynamic equilibrium was established. However, this equilibrium was subsequently disrupted by intense human activities, leading to renewed oscillations of erosion and accretion along the sandy shoreline.

Keywords

Sandy shoreline / Satellite image / Human activities / Fluvial sediment transport / Pingtan Island

References

[1] AertsJC, BotzenWW, EmanuelK, LinN, De MoelH, Michel-KerjanEO. Evaluating flood resilience strategies for coastal megacities. Science, 2014, 344(6183): 473-475

[2] ClevelandWS, DevlinSJ. Locally weighted regression: an approach to regression analysis by local fitting. J Am Stat Assoc, 1988, 83(403): 596-610

[3] de RhamLP, ProwseTD, BonsalBR. Temporal variations in river-ice break-up over the Mackenzie River Basin. Canada J Hydrol, 2008, 349(3–4): 441-454

[4] DefeoO, McLachlanA, SchoemanDS, SchlacherTA, DuganJ, JonesA, LastraM, ScapiniF. Threats to sandy beach ecosystems: a review. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci, 2009, 81(1): 1-12

[5] DingPX, WangHJ, MengXW, ZhuJR, ZhangLQ, ShanXJ Evolution Trend and Vulnerability Assessment of Typical Coastal zones in China Under the Influence of Climate Change, 2016 Beijing China Science Press

[6] Donnelly JP, Cleary P, Newby P, Ettinger R (2004) Coupling instrumental and geological records of sea‐level change: Evidence from southern New England of an increase in the rate of sea‐level rise in the late 19th century. Geophys Res Lett 31(5). https://doi.org/10.1029/2003GL018933

[7] GrottoliE, BiausqueM, JacksonDW, CooperJAG. Long-term drivers of shoreline change over two centuries on a headland-embayment beach. Earth Surf Proc Land, 2023, 48(13): 2500-2520

[8] GuanZQ, LiJY, XieLL, ZhengQA, YeXM. Analysis of Coastline Changes in Zhanjiang Bay from 1973 to 2023. Tropical Geography, 2024, 44(11): 2025-2038

[9] HaasnootM, LawrenceJ, MagnanAK. Pathways to coastal retreat. Science, 2021, 372(6548): 287-1290

[10] HongshuaiQ, GenL, FengC. Development trend and prospect of beach nourishment technology. J Appl Oceanography, 2021, 40(1): 111-125

[11] Hu TH (2023) Study on multi-scale morphodynamic characteristics of sandy coasts along the Qiongzhou Strait. Dissertation, Guangdong Ocean University.

[12] JiangM, ZhuJ, LiuT, et al.. On the erosion mechanism and restoration strategies of Banyue Bay in Quanzhou City, Fujian. South China Oceanologia Et Limnologia Sinica, 2024, 55(06): 1394-1405

[13] JinD, HoaglandP, AuDK, QiuJ. Shoreline change, seawalls, and coastal property values. Ocean Coast Manag, 2015, 114: 185-193

[14] JingZ, HeH, KeoS, ZhaoH. The distributional paterns of sediment loads of global rivers and influencing factors. J Soil Water Conserv, 2017, 31(3): 1-9

[15] Ji-YuC, Shen-LiangC. Estuarine and coastal challenges in China. Chin J Oceanol Limnol, 2002, 02: 174-181

[16] LiHaiqi, WangAijun, YeXiang, et al.. Spatio-temporal variations in grain size of surficial sediment on tidal flat of Langqi Island in Minjiang River estuary. Mar Geol Q Geol, 2023, 43(6): 14-24

[17] LiuM, ZhaoDL. Comprehensive studies on wind and wave climates in China Seas based on ERA-20C reanalysis data. Periodical of Ocean University of China, 2019, 49(7): 1-10

[18] LuijendijkA, HagenaarsG, RanasingheR, BaartF, DonchytsG, AarninkhofS. The state of the world’s beaches. Sci Rep, 2018, 8(1): 6641

[19] LuqueP, Gómez-PujolL, RibasF, FalquésA, MarcosM, OrfilaA. Shoreline response to sea-level rise according to equilibrium beach transects. Sci Rep, 2023, 13(1): 15789

[20] MeletA, TeatiniP, Le CozannetG, JametC, ConversiA, BenvenisteJ, AlmarR. Earth observations for monitoring marine coastal hazards and their drivers. Surv Geophys, 2020, 41: 1489-1534

[21] MentaschiL, VousdoukasMI, PekelJF, VoukouvalasE, FeyenL. Global long-term observations of coastal erosion and accretion. Sci Rep, 2018, 8(1): 1-11

[22] Moutzouris C (1990) Effect of harbour works on the morphology of three Greek coasts. Proceedings, 27th International Navigation Congress:17–21.

[23] Qi HS, Mao ZJ, Cao C,Cai F, Liu JH, Lei G, Zhao SH, Liu G, Zhao XT (2024) Spatiotemporal distribution characteristics and evaluation of coastal zone resilience in the southern Fujian coastal area. J Appl Oceanogr 43(02):292–304

[24] SemeoshenkovaV, NewtonA. Overview of erosion and beach quality issues in three Southern European countries: Portugal, Spain and Italy. Ocean Coast Manag, 2015, 118: 12-21

[25] ShortAD, HespPA. Wave, beach and dune interactions in southeastern Australia. Mar Geol, 1982, 48(3–4): 259-284

[26] Third Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources (TIO) (2020) Comprehensive Consulting for the Marine Ecological Protection and Restoration Project in the Junshan Area of the Pingtan Comprehensive Experimental Zone: Wave Numerical Modeling Study Report for the Coastal Protection and Restoration Project of Yufan Bay and Da'ao Bay (in Chinese). Xiamen: Third Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources.

[27] TuTM, SuSC, ShyuHC, HuangPS. A new look at IHS-like image fusion methods. Information Fusion, 2001, 2(3): 177-186

[28] TurnerIL, HarleyMD, AlmarR, BergsmaEW. Satellite optical imagery in Coastal Engineering. Coast Eng, 2021, 167: 103919

[29] VosK, SplinterKD, HarleyMD, SimmonsJA, TurnerIL. CoastSat: A Google Earth Engine-enabled Python toolkit to extract shorelines from publicly available satellite imagery. Environ Model Softw, 2019, 122: 104528

[30] VosK, HarleyMD, TurnerIL, SplinterKD. Pacific shoreline erosion and accretion patterns controlled by El Niño/Southern Oscillation. Nat Geosci, 2023, 16(2): 140-146

[31] WangY, JiXM. Environmental characteristics and changes of coastal ocean as land-ocean transitional zone of China. Scientia Geographica Sinica/dili Kexue, 2011, 31(2): 129-135

[32] WangAijun, YeXiang, XuXiaoHu, XieJinJian, TaoShuQin, LaiZhiKun, WuShuiLan, YangYuXin. " Source-to-sink" Processes of a Subtropical Mid-small Mountainous River-wide Continental Shelf System: A case study from the Minjiang River-east China Sea system. Acta Sedimentol Sin, 2022, 40(6): 1615-1634

[33] WangC, CaiF, QiH, ZhaoS, LiuG, HeY, LuH, SunY, ZhangT. Response patterns of mountain river deltas and adjacent coasts to the changes in sediment discharge: A case study of Minjiang River China. J Hydrol Regional Studies, 2024, 56: 102051

[34] XiaoZY, QiHS, CaiF, et al.. The impact of artificial island construction on sedimentary characteristics and sediment transport in the Haikou BAY. Haiyang Xuebao, 2022, 44(03): 137-146

[35] YangSL, MillimanJD, LiP, et al.. 50,000 dams later: Erosion of the Yangtze River and its delta. Global Planet Change, 2011, 75(1–2): 14-20

[36] YanyuH, JianhuiL, FengC, BailiangL, LihuiW, ChangmaoZ. Several characteristics of beach aeolian sand transport influenced by tide: A case study in the Yuandangao Beach, Pingtan Island. Fujian Province Haiyang Xuebao, 2018, 40(9): 90-102

[37] ZengST, ChenM, QiHS, et al.. Impacts of environmental factors and beach restoration on sandy beach microbenthic fauna on Xiamen Island. Journal of Applied Oceanography, 2024, 43(03): 521-532

[38] ZhijunD, ChunchuL. Shoreline configuration and geomorphologic development mode of arc-shaped coast in South China. J Geog Sci, 2004, 14: 473-480

[39] Zhu XJ (2022) Beach resilient processes and mechanisms under the conditions of sediment deficit. Dissertation, Fuzhou University.

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

The Author(s)