Author Question: Using information in Figures 1 and 2, suggest what might have been done before December 1992 to ... (Read 38 times)

wenmo · **on:** Jul 16, 2018

Using information in Figures 1 and 2, suggest what might have been done before December 1992 to diminish the property losses of the storm.

What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

Notice in the December 1992 map that two inlets were eroded through the barrier island during the storm, but by March, the western inlet had closed with newly deposited sediment while the eastern inlet became larger.

Explain why one inlet closed while the other enlarged.
What will be an ideal response?

Ksh22 · **Reply #1 on:** Jul 16, 2018

Answer to Question 1

Building more groins along the beach to the southwest would have trapped sediment carried by longshore currents to widen the island rather than erosion that made the coastal area more vulnerable to storm damage. Sand could have been added to the beach to replace the sand that was eroding away in order to maintain a wide beach in front of the homes; the storm may have still caused considerable erosion but may not have caused breaches in the barrier island or erosion all of the way back to where the homes were located. Sea walls could have been built in front of the homes.

Answer to Question 2

The longshore current flows from northeast to southwest. Waves eroding sediment along the edge of the eastern inlet provided sediment that moved to the southwest where it was deposited too close in the western inlet. The eastern inlet was closer to the groins than the western inlet, so the eastern inlet was not receiving sediment from currents moving along the shoreline from the northeast.