Coastal Vulnerability Index (CVI) dataset for Cumberland Island National Seashore (cuis_shore)

• Main Author: Elizabeth Pendleton
• Format: Dataset
• Language: unknown
• Published: USGS Science Data Catalog 2005
• Subjects: U.S. Geological Survey; USGS; Coastal and Marine Geology Program; CMGP; Woods Hole Science Center; National Park Service; NPS; coastal vulnerability; sea-level rise; CVI; coastal geomorphology; shoreline change rate; regional coastal slope; regional sea-level rise rate; mean significant wave height; mean tidal range; oceans; geoscientificInformation; environment; agents of coastal change; effects of coastal change; sea level change; coastal processes; shoreline accretion; shoreline erosion; sea-level change; erosion; hazards; risk assessment; Cumberland Island National Seashore; Cumberland Island; St. Marys; Georgia; Southeast barrier islands; Cumberland Sound; Kings Bay; Georgia Bight; Barrier Islands
• Online Access: https://search.dataone.org/view/1658e509-53cc-4cff-9975-a481700823d1

A coastal vulnerability index (CVI) was used to map the relative vulnerability of the coast to future sea-level rise within Cumberland Island National Seashore in Georgia. The CVI ranks the following in terms of their physical contribution to sea-level rise-related coastal change: geomorphology, regional coastal slope, rate of relative sea-level rise, historical shoreline change rates, mean tidal range and mean significant wave height. The rankings for each input variable were combined and an index value calculated for 1-minute grid cells covering the park. The CVI highlights those regions where the physical effects of sea-level rise might be the greatest. This approach combines the coastal system's susceptibility to change with its natural ability to adapt to changing environmental conditions, yielding a quantitative, although relative, measure of the park's natural vulnerability to the effects of sea-level rise. The CVI and the data contained within this dataset provide an objective technique for evaluation and long-term planning by scientists and park managers.