ASSESSMENT OF DECADAL AND ANNUAL BEACH WIDTH AND DUNE HEIGHT PATTERNS ON MASONBORO ISLAND, NORTH CAROLINA

摘要

Barrier islands are an important natural resource that provide ecosystem services as well as economic benefits to surrounding coastal areas. The evolution and survival of these systems are driven by a combination of natural processes, such as storm activity and sea level rise, and human activities including beach nourishment and inlet management. Masonboro Island, North Carolina, is an exceptional location to study barrier island evolution in response to the processes described above because of the lack of development along its shoreline. This system provides an ideal model to assess how a sand limited island naturally responds to storm events when coupled with coastal management and to evaluate the best approaches for managing this type of system.