Graduation date: 2000
The 14-km long Netarts Littoral Cell, located on the northern Oregon coast, experienced
episodic erosion as a result of the severe 1997-98 El Nino and 1998-99 La Nina. The
erosion events led to the development of a unique partnership bridging scientists,
stakeholders, and various planning agencies. To address these erosion issues, a regional
demonstration project for littoral cell hazard planning was undertaken. To support the
planning efforts a GIS inventory was created to spatially examine erosion hotspots and
aid stakeholders in planning for future chronic and catastrophic erosion events. The GIS
combines a physical, cultural, and hazards inventory, a shoreline change analysis, and
coastal hazard risk assessment into a decision support tool to facilitate coastal hazards
management. Shoreline change analysis examined historical aerial photos and new
LIDAR remote sensing technologies, with results showing multiple scale patterns of
erosion and accretion that have significant implications to both science and management.
Hazard risk zones were generated using predictive erosion models and geological
observations. The GIS and decision support system facilitates the examination of hazards
to develop avoidance strategies. Through spatial queries, decision-makers can examine
various data layers to guide future oceanfront development and redevelopment. The
development of this GIS in conjunction with a stakeholder process facilitates community
involvement from GIS design through implementation of identified hazard management
recommendations. Implementing mechanisms will occur through adoption of local land
use policies and changes to park master plans. The interdisciplinary nature of this project
allows for the range of stakeholder opinions, thus creating a unique opportunity to
address coastal hazards at a regional scale, the same scale at which coastal erosion
processes operate.