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| Thank you for your participation! |
We are sending you this email update because you have participated in VLIZ’s CoastSnap Belgium citizen science project. Since June 2020 we have received more than 500 images of Oostende beach and over 100 from our site in Koksijde. VLIZ would like to personally thank you for your participation and share with you the information we can now provide to coastal managers in order to maintain Belgium’s beautiful coastline.
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Results
This image is a great example of the information CoastSnap Belgium can present. Currently sea-level rise is causing Belgium to loose 2.5-3m of beach every year. It is thus important that we continue to develop monitoring programs such as CoastSnap Belgium in order to accurately determine the effectiveness of our coastal management methodologies.
The Coastline Is Dynamic
Beaches are a very dynamic environment and are subject to many processes that can either pull sand away or push sand on to the beach. Coastal waves interacting with the beach-face are the primary driver of short-term beach morphology. In summer conditions we typically observe calmer conditions than in winter. This allows for sand to settle out of the ocean water and onto the beach. CoastSnap Belgium observed this in the period from the 26th of February to the 17th of June in 2022. Over 111 days the conditions allowed for Oostende beach to grow 4 meters (see left). To do this ourselves along a 1km beach would require 24 dump-trucks!
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Click image to enlarge
For Every Action, There Is an Equal and Opposite Reaction...
In reference to newtons 3rd law, if the beach can gain this much sand during calm periods it can also loose just as much in the stormy periods. The yearly transition from summer to winter conditions along the coast is characteristically defined by an increase in storm activity and frequency. This results in the waves along the coast growing in height and power. Instead of allowing the sand to settle, the turbulent action of large waves crashing into the beach re-suspends the previously settled sand back into the ocean water where it is transported away from the beach. In the 169 days days between the 3rd of November 2021 and the 21st of April 2022, CoastSnap Belgium recorded that the beach in Oostende retreated 6m. This is the equivalent of 50 dump trucks of sand leaving a 1km long beach.
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| Future of CoastSnap Belgium |
Due to the successful pilot studies at Oostende and Koksijde, we are now planning to expand and further implement additional CoastSnap locations along the Belgian coastline. We will also be adding additional seaview photo stations so that we can record the development of upcoming offshore projects. Look out for CoastSnap Belgium at the following beaches;
- De Panne
- Koksijde
- Nieuwpoort
- Oostende
- Wenduine
- Knokke
With the communities ongoing input, we will be able to provide the much needed coastal data to coastal managers as they work to counter sea-level-rise and maintain a healthy beach environment for all those that enjoy spending time at the beach.
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| Would you like to become more involved with Belgian marine science? Check out our other interesting citizen science projects by clicking the image. |
Seawatch-B
A standardised multi-parameter long-term monitoring project for the shallow North Sea coasts of Belgium.
Recreational Fishing
An initiative whereby amateur fishermen contribute to science by sharing their logbook data.
The Great Shell Day
An annual event where citizens count and identify ten thousands of shells on the beach, assisted by experts.
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Who we are at VLIZ
The Flanders Marine Institute promotes marine knowledge creation and excellence through sound interdisciplinary research about the ocean, seas, coast and tidal estuaries. We do this in close collaboration with other (marine) research groups, citizens, policy makers and industrial partners in Flanders, Belgium, and through international collaboration.
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