The Impact of Climate Change on Coastal Communities

The impacts of climate change are felt globally, especially in coastal communities. Maine felt the effects of climate change this past winter when powerful storms and flooding berated its coast. The Camp Ellis Jetty was particularly vulnerable to these storms, and the Saco Bay community lost nearly 40 homes as a result. In this episode, we spoke with Dr. Will Kochtitzky who is leveraging GIS technology, lidar, and photogrammetry to study the effects of sea-level rise on the Camp Ellis Jetty in Maine. Kochtitzky is also a professor at the University of New England (UNE), preparing students with hands-on experience so they have the tools to research and respond to climate change scenarios such as this one.

The concepts in this episode align with what Florida, North Carolina, and other southern states are experiencing in the wake of Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton. This episode was recorded before the storms, which devastated communities in September and October. We hope that these communities recover soon and heal from this disaster.

Building Coastal Resilience in Maine

Dr. Kochtitzky connects his research to community resilience-building efforts. Between sea-level rise and the risks of storm surges, the community and environment in Saco Bay need protection. The team’s research has demonstrated a massive loss of sand (coastal erosion) in Saco Bay following the storms last winter, and restrictions prevent the community from building new seawalls. Having an accurate understanding of the area can enable the community to advocate for themselves and develop the resources they need to protect the coast.

Dr. Will Kochtitzky shared that “People have adapted to be just [prepared] enough for these big storms… But now we’re seeing higher storm surges and stronger storms — on top of sea-level rise — which leads to high cost of living in coastal environments.”

The Relevance of Sea-Level Rise

If you live on or near the coast, you’ve probably heard the term sea-level rise. This consequence of the Earth’s changing climate is affecting communities worldwide. As indicated earlier in this article, the Camp Ellis Jetty in Maine is a uniquely challenged area when it comes to the ocean’s rising sea level. Dr. Kochtitzky shared that water usually flows along Maine’s coast from north to south. However, Saco Bay is an exception to this pattern. The water flows along Saco Bay from south to north, which causes coastal erosion at the Camp Ellis Jetty.

Dr. Kochtitzky also shared that the government is in the process of implementing a solution aiming to ameliorate conditions and encourage resilience in Saco Bay and at the Camp Ellis Jetty. The project entails constructing a spur jetty that will be built perpendicular to the current one to mitigate damage to the coast. Kochtitzky notes “My group is very interested to see how this is going to change ocean circulation and coastal erosion patterns in this region moving forward.”

Learn more about sea-level rise on GEOTalks.

GIS Technology

With sea-level rise and storm surges posing greater risk to coasts each year, building coastal resilience remains key to protecting these communities and ecosystems. To inform plans for coastal resilience in Saco Bay, Kochtitzky’s team has been researching and monitoring the Camp Ellis Jetty with the help of Global Mapper.

Aerial Imagery

Topo Map

DEM

In the episode, Dr. Kochtitzky explained, “As we lose mass [of glaciers] in the Arctic, it’s causing sea-level rise across the planet. That’s what we’ve been seeing over the last several decades — as sea-level rise has accelerated, coastal communities are impacted — particularly during storm events.”

Emergency Response and Planning Applications

Global Mapper® is used for a range of emergency response planning and environmental resilience applications, including processing lidar data and point clouds to perform precise research. Dr. Kochtitzky uses drone-collected data to monitor the Camp Ellis Jetty over time, focusing on the damage the coast suffers due to storm surges and sea-level rise.

The analysis and visualization techniques available in Global Mapper enable users to model both past and predicted flood events. This functionality can be leveraged to determine what land areas are at risk of flooding and inform emergency response plans.

Learn how to create a coastal flood visualization in Global Mapper.

Analyzing the Coast’s Health

Maine’s beaches and salt marshes are vulnerable to the worsening effects of climate change. After the devastation last winter, Dr. Kochtitzky analyzed the data to garner insights about the health of the coast. He learned that these beaches lost around 50% of their dunes due to the impact of the storm. Learn more about how they responded to this massive loss of sand in the episode!

Another indicator of a coast’s health is the state of its salt marshes. Coastal salt marshes in Maine can’t keep up with how fast the sea level is rising, or the aggresive storm surges, which puts them at risk of drowning. Dr. Kochtitzky explained that when salt marshes drown, vegetation starts dying off, and mega-pools of standing water form on top of them. In Episode One of GEOTalks, we discussed how salt marshes protect coastal environments and offer a range of ecosystem services. It is crucial to analyze the health of these ecosystems and develop plans to preserve the biodiversity living there.

Dr. Kochtitzky visualizes lidar and point cloud data to analyze these factors. By monitoring erosion and salt marsh vegetation over time with drone/UAV technology, Kochtitzky’s team can quantify the damage to the coast and plan for the future.

Learn more about environmental resilience on GEOTalks.

Preparing for the Future at the University of New England — Connect with Dr. Will Kochtitzky

As an Assistant Professor of the GIS Program at the University of New England, Dr. Will Kochtitzky is using all of the GIS tools at his disposal — including drones for collecting lidar and point cloud data — to teach his students how to research our changing planet.

Connect with Dr. Will Kochtitzky about something you heard in the episode: wkochtitzky@une.edu
Learn more about his work: https://iceandclimate.org/
Connect with the University of New England: https://www.une.edu/

How can I support GEOTalks?

Share your story about leveraging geospatial technology on GEOTalks — we love sharing the creative solutions our users are developing. Get involved with GEOTalks by emailing us at marketing@bluemarblegeo.com.

Share your favorite quotes or topics from the episode with us on social media by using #GEOTalksPod!

References

Wood, Jeff. Water St. in Hallowell, ME.

• Jeff Wood Imagery
• @jeffwoodimagery on Instagram

Kochtitzky, Will. Biddeford Pool data. University of New England. 

Photograph of Dr. Kochtitzky with students courtesy of the University of New England.

Curcio, Andrea. Point cloud profile. Universidad de Cadiz, dron.uca.es