Geomorphological Response to Extreme

Events, Great Kills Park, Gateway National

Recreation Area

Norbert P. Psuty, Andrea J. Spahn, William J. Schmelz Sandy Hook Cooperative Research Programs

Institute of Marine and Coastal SciencesRutgers – The State University of New Jersey

Sandy Hook, New Jersey

Gateway National

Recreation Area

Great Kills Park

Resources impacted by erosion

Management to be science based

Geotemporal dimensions

Geomorphological Response Related to:

DriversIncident wavesWater level working onAntecedent topographySediment supply / sediment

budget

LiDAR Source:J.C., al. 2006, USGS-NPS-NASA Bare Earth Topography Sagamore Hill NHS, USGS Open File Report 2007-1394 (On CD).

Source:

Park on site of former Barrier Island

Park site-

Limited sediment input from updrift-

buffering of incident waves by marsh remnant

Mar 31 2009

Water Level and Threshold 2010

-2

0

2

4

6

8

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50

Elevati

on (m

eters r

el. NA

VD88)

Distance (meters)

Oct-09 Nov-09 Mar-10

profile GK 4.5

max water level Mar 13, 2010max water level Nov 14, 2009

LiDAR Data Source:Brock, J.C., et al. 2006, USGS-NPS-NASA Bare Earth Topography Sagamore Hill NHS, USGS Open File Report 2007-1394 (On CD).

November 2009 to March 2010

Elevation change-

Volume change

Plus anthropogenic

Water Level and Storm Threshold - 2012

Superstorm Sandy

-Elevation Change

-Volume Changeby Compartment

-Dune is positive element

June 19, 2013

Diffraction downdrift of remnant marsh-

Expanding log-spiralerosion, extending downdrift

greater mobilization with storm magnitude-

Dune is positive element

‘natural’ versus manipulated