National Academies Press: OpenBook

Managing Coastal Erosion (1990)

Chapter: Front Matter

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 1990. Managing Coastal Erosion. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/1446.
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^ G ~ G C O ^ S T ^ eROS O M Committee on Comity Erosion Zone Management Water Science and Technology Bond One Board Commlsslon on Englneerlng and ~chulc~ Systems Tonal Research Council NORMAL ACADEMY PRESS ~shlngton, D.C. logo

NationalAcademy Press · 2101 Constitution Avenue,N.W. . Washington, D.C. 20418 NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competence, with regard for appropriate balance. This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors according to procedures approved by a Report Review Committee consisting of members of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furthering of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Frank Press is president of the National Academy of Sciences. The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Robert M. White is president of the National Academy of Engineering. The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Samuel O. Thier is president of the Institute of Medicine. The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy's purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both academies and by the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Frank Press and Dr. Robert M. White are chairman and vice-chairman, respectively, of the National Research Council. Support for this project was provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency under Grant No. EMW-88-G-2786. Library of Congress Catalog Child Number 89-13845 International Standard Book Number 0-309-04143-0 Copyright @1990 by the National Academy of Sciences Printed in the United States of America

COMMITTEE ON COASTAL EROSION ZONE MANAGEMENT WILLIAM L. WOOD, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, Chairman ROBERT G. DEAN, University of Florida MARTIN JANNERETH, Michigan Department of Natural Resources JUDITH T. KTEDOW, Massachusetts Institute of Technology STEPHEN P. LEATHERMAN, University of Maryland BERNARD LE MEHAUTE, University of Miami, Miami, Florida DAVID W. OWENS, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill RUTHERFORD H. PLATT, University of Massachusetts ROBERT L. WlEGEL, University of California, Berkeley Consultant GERALDINE BACHMAN, Marsolan Associates Federal Agency Liaison Representatives KATHRYN COUSINS, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Washington, D.C. TODD L. WALTON, JR., U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Coastal Engineering Research Center, Vicksburg, Mississippi S. JEFFRESS WILLIAMS, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston ... . . v 1rglnla National Research Council Staff ., SHEILA D. DAVID, Program Officer, Water Science and Technology Board DONALD W. PERKINS, Associate Director, Marine Board JEANNE AQUlLINO, Project Secretary, Water Science and Technology Board Federal Emergency Management Agency MICHAEL BUCKLEY, Project Officer · ·. 111

Additional Resource Persons JAMES H. BREED, Mobil Land Development Corporation DON COLLINS, Federal Insurance Administration ROBERT DOI,AN, University of Virginia GEORGE DOMURAT, Los Angeles District, Corps of Engineers JOHN FLYNN, Ventura County Supervisor JAMES McGRATH, California Coastal Commission BRLAN MRAZ1K, Federal Emergency Management Agency WES OOMS, State Farm Insurance FRANK REILLY, Federal Insurance Administration 1V

WATER SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY BOARD MICHAEL C. KAVANAUGH, James M. Montgomery Consulting Engineers, Oakland, California, Chairman STEPHEN J. BURGES, University of Washington (through 6/30/89) NORMAN H. BROOKS, California Institute of Technology RICHARD A. CONWAY, Union Carbide Corporation, South Charleston, West Virginia JAMES P. HEANEY, University of Florida R. KEITH HIGGINSON, Idaho Department of Water Resources Boise (through 6/30/89) HOWARD C. KUNREUTHER, University of Pennsylvania LUNA B. LEOPOLD, University of California, Berkeley (through 6/30/89) G. RICHARD MARZOLF, Murray State University, Murray, Kentucky ROBERT R. MEGLEN, University of Colorado at Denver JAMES W. MERGER, GeoTrans, Herndon, Virginia (through 6/30/89) DONALD 3. O'CONNOR, Manhattan College, Bronx, New York BETTY H. OLSON, University of California at Irvine P. SURESH C. RAO, University of Florida GORDON G. ROBECK, Consultant, Laguna Hills, California (through 6/30/89) PATRICIA L. ROSENFIELD, The Carnegie Corporation of New York DONALD D. RUNNELLS, University of Colorado, Boulder A. DAN TARLOCK, Chicago Kent College Law School HUGO F. THOMAS, Department of Environmental Protection, Hartford, Connecticut JAMES R. WALLIS, IBM Watson Research Center, Yorktown Heights, New York M. GORDON WOLMAN, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland Staff STEPHEN D. PARKER, Director SHEILA D. DAVID, Senior Staff Officer

CHRIS ELFRING, Senior Staff Officer WENDY L. MELGIN, Staff Officer JEANNE AQUILINO, Administrative Assistant RENEE A. HAWKINS, Administrative Secretary ANITA A. HALL, Senior Secretary V1

MARINE BOARD SIDNEY A. WALLACE, Hill, Betts & Nash, Reston, Virginia, Chairman BRIAN 3. WATT, TECHSAVANT, Inc., Kingwood, Texas, Vice Chairman ROGER D. ANDERSON, Cox's Wholesale Seafood, Inc., Tampa, Florida ROBERT G. BEA, University of California, Berkeley, California JAMES M. BROADUS III, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Woods Hole, Massachusetts F. PAT DUNN, Shell Oil Company, Houston, Texas LARRY L. GENTRY, Lockheed Advanced Marine Systems, Sunnyvale, California DANA R. KESTER, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, Rhode Island JUDITH T. KILDOW, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts WARREN LEBACK, Consultant, Princeton, New Jersey BERNARD LE MEHAUTE, University of Miami, Miami, Florida WILLIAM R. MURDEN, Murden Marine, Ltd., Alexandria, Virginia EUGENE K. PENTIMONTI, American President Lines, Ltd., Oakland, California JOSEPH D. PORRICEI`LI, ECO, Inc., Annapolis, Maryland JERRY R. SCHUBEL, State University of New York, Stony Brook, New York RICHARD J. SEYMOUR, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, California ROBERT N. STEINER, Atlantic Container Line, South Plainfield, New Jersey EDWARD WENK, JR., University of Washington, Seattle, Washington Staff CHARLES A. BOOKMAN, Director DONALD W. PERKINS, Associate Director SUSAN GARBINI, Project Officer PAUL SCHOLZ, Sea Grant Fellow ALEXANDER B. STAVOVY, Project Officer WAYNE YOUNG, Project Officer ·— V11

DORIS C. HOLMES, Staff Associate AURORE BLECK, Senior Project Assistant DELPHINE GLAZE, Senior Project Assistant GLORIA B. GREEN, Project Assistant CARLA D. MOORE, Project Assistant ·.. van

Preface In response to a request from the Federal Emergency Manage- ment Agency/Federal Insurance Administration (FEMA/FlA) in 1988, the National Research Council (NRC) established the Com- mittee on Coastal Erosion Zone Management under the auspices of its Water Science and Technology Board and the Marine Board. The committee was asked to provide advice on appropriate ero- sion management strategies, supporting data needs, and applicable methodologies to administer these strategies through the National Flood Insurance Program. The committee's task was a difficult one, owing to the complexity of the policy arena within which coastal erosion mitigation programs must be developed and to the uncertainty in trying to quantify coastal response to erosion-causing forces. An underlying concern of the committee in addressing its task was that of managing a valuable and complex natural resource. This concern was complicated by the fact that "value" exists in both the intrinsic natural attributes of the resource and in the material additions created by residency at the coast. The challenge was to create a balance in approaches to erosion mitigation in such a way as to provide opportunity for science and engineering to be used effectively in the planning and management process. Congress has provided limited authorization for FEMA to im- plement a coastal erosion management program; however, this does IX

x PREFACE not preclude the necessity for a broader public discussion of the ap- propriateness of such a program. The issue of whether the federal government should be involved in erosion insurance at all was of some concern within the committee. Several members were of the opinion that no federal insurance should be provided to those who take the risk of building (or buying) in an erosion zone and that those who do should bear their own losses. Further, one member believes that coastal erosion management programs and plans should be a function of state governments and not the federal government (see minority opinion, Appendix E). Conversely, some members argued in favor of a federal insurance program on coastal erosion that reflects the philosophy of the Upton-3ones Amendment (see page 3~. Still others believe in the philosophies behind the Clean Water Act and the Coastal Zone Management Act where government participates in coastal protection but does not pay people for their losses. The committee had to take into consideration a number of com- plicating and often conflicting factors. For example, federal, state, and local governmental structures create multijurisdictional over- laps that are often complicated by multistate and regional interests. Economic incentives to develop high-hazard, high-value coastal land often conflict with those interests wanting to preserve natural envi- ronments. The expenditure of tax dollars for erosion mitigation in coastal regions necessitates public representation through a govern- ment agency, which in turn may be viewed as an intrusion on private development. Additionally, coastal erosion often is caused by federal and local government actions, such as dredging and the building of dams on rivers supplying sand to the coast. In an attempt to clarify broader coastal erosion zone manage- ment issues, this report goes beyond a simple, direct response to FEMA's requested tasks. This report does provide FEMA with the requested review and evaluation of existing federal and state erosion management programs, existing federal and state data collection pro- grams and future needs, and engineering as well as policy alternatives to erosion mitigation and control. However, the committee wishes to point out that this report only provides guidelines for coastal ero- sion zone management. Many of the details and technical standards necessary to carry out the recommendations made in this report will require concentrated and detailed work by specialized groups of experts. Toward the end of the committee's study, Hurricane Hugo caused major devastation and loss of coastal inland property in South Car-

PREFACE X1 olina. According to the Federal Insurance Adrn~nistration, prelimi- nary estimates for payment of all claims for flood damage resulting from Hurricane Hugo watt be between $225 million and $275 million. At this time, the flood insurance fund, generated from premium in- come, is sufficient to pay this amount to compensate those insured who have suffered flood damage. The committee was composed of an outstanding and diverse group of professionals, including two state coastal managers and professors of ocean policy, law, coastal geomorphology, policy, and coastal engineering. In its research, meetings, and writing for this report, the committee members gave generously and graciously of their expertise and time. The committee wishes to acknowledge the outstanding support of the stafl.s of two NRC boards: the Water Science and Technology Board and the Marine Board. We appreciate their special contribu- tions in the preparation of this report. Sheila David, Project Officer, and Jeanne Aquilino, Project Secretary of the Water Science and Technology Board, were instrumental in helping us meet our com- mitments in issuing this report. Don Perkins, Associate Director of the Marine Board, anti Sheila David were extremely helpful with their suggestions and efforts in preparing and revising the draft reports. Finally, ~ wish to personally extend my deepest appreciation to each of the committee members for their considerable attention to the complex task set before them. Their outstanding professional competence, patience, and cooperation deserve special recognition. WILLIAM L`. WOOD Chairman

Contents EXECUTIVE SlJMMARYe~ en eeeee~eee~~ee 1 Conclusions and Recommendations, 5 1 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND 2 COASTAL EROSION ITS CAUSES, EF1?ECTS, AND DISTRIBUTION ~ ~ e e e e e e Introduction, 20 Regional Variation, 21 Beach Processes The Natural System, 23 Human-Induced Changes, 29 U.S. Coastline Characteristics, 36 Summary, 41 References, 42 3 MANAGEMENT AND APPROACHES Introduction, 44 Types of Diversity, 44 Private and Public Participants in Coastal Management, 47 Relevant Federal Programs, 51 Methods for Erosion Hazard Reduction, 56 Surnrnary, 68 References, 69 · ·. x~n .16 20 44

XIV CONTENTS 4 THE NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM 71 Overview, 71 NF1P Erosion Provisions, 72 Experience with Hazard Delineation in the NF1P, 74 Experience with Costs, 76 Loss Prevention Under the NF1P: The Upton-Jones Amendment, 78 Experience to Date with the Upton-Jones Amendment, 83 Delineation and Local Management of E-Zones, 89 Inclusion of Erosion in Unified National Program, 91 References, 93 5 STATE PROGRAMS AND EXPERIENCES Types of State Programs, 94 Michigan's Great Lakes Shoreland Erosion Program, 100 North Carolina's Coastal Erosion Management Program, 104 Florida's Coastal Erosion Management Program, 107 CaTifornia's Coastal Erosion Management Program, 109 Summary, 117 References, 117 6 PREDICTING FUTURE SHORELINE CHANGES. Introduction, 120 Historical Shoreline Change Method, 122 Predictive Models, 129 A Comprehensive Method of Predicting Shoreline Changes, 132 Recornrnended Methodologies, 135 Establishment of a Computerized National Data Base, 139 Research and Data Needs, 140 References, 141 . . 94 APPENDIXES A. Upton-Jones Amendment 120 145 B. Glossary e ee e 148 C. Shore Response Modeling Methods ~ 151 Introduction, 151 I`ongshore Transport Models, 151 Cross-Shore Transport Models, 152 References, 159

ID D. Sections ~ National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 E. ~lnorlty Oplnlon of Robert E. Wlegel ............ F. Seraph of Hurrlc~e Hugo................. G. Blographlcal Sketches of Committee Defers ..... 161 ..... 164 ................. ....... 165 168 173 . .

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More and more of the nation's vast coastlines are being filled with homes and vacation resorts. The result is an increasing number of structures built on erosion-prone shores—with many of these structures facing collapse or damage. In response to mounting property losses, Congress has given the Federal Emergency Management Agency responsibility for incorporating coastal erosion into its National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

This book from the National Research Council addresses the immediate question of how to develop an erosion insurance program—as well as the larger issues raised by the continually changing face of our nation's shorelines.

Managing Coastal Erosion explores major questions surrounding a national policy on coastal erosion: Should the federal government be in the business of protecting developers and individuals who build in erosion-prone coastal areas? How should such a program be implemented? Can it prompt more responsible management of coastal areas?

The volume provides federal policymakers, state floodplain and resource managers, civil engineers, environmental groups, marine specialists, development companies, and researchers with invaluable information about the natural processes of coastal erosion and the effect of human activity on those processes. The book also details the workings of the NFIP, lessons to be learned from numerous state coastal management programs, and much more.

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