Coasts

... how can shorelines be managed for the third millennium?

Coastal regions account for one quarter of global human habitation and one third of the global economy. They are particularly vulnerable to increased sea levels, changing storms and other climate changes. Signiflcant coastal impacts throughout the twenty-flrst century and beyond are inevitable without appropriate adaptation. A range of government and non-government organisations, both nationally and internationally, are asking for ways to address this challenge.

Our coastal research tackles the issue by building on the successful development in Phase 1 of integrated methods for analysing adaptation options for the sustainable governance of coastlines.

We modelled the effects of climate change on a range of coastal parameters, including landscape-level analysis. During Phase 2 we are developing further integrated tools for coastal simulation and analysis, exploring their practical application to long term coastal management in a range of situations. This requires scaling down climate and socio-economic scenarios from global to local.

The implications of coastal change for coastal resources and social and economic impacts are also being assessed. We are exploring a wide range of adaptation options including flood risk management systems and planned retreat. We are also exploring participation and improvement of coastal governance to respond to climate change, using dialogue and virtual reality methods of visualisation. We listen very carefully to coastal communities, coastal managers and governments.

Programme Leader: Professor Robert J Nicholls, University of Southampton
Deputy Leaders: Dr Mike Walkden, Newcastle University and Professor Peter Stansby , University of Manchester

The Tyndall Centre is a partnert of the BRANCH Project. BRANCH advocates change to the spatial planning and land use systems to allow wildlife to adapt to climate change We will demonstrate the need for change based on science, and recommend policies and tools that we will develop in collaboration with planners.