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Project title

Estimating shoreline recession rates for coastal hard cliffs using time-series elevation data and additional datasets

Primary Funding Agency

Geological Survey Ireland

Co-Funding Organisation(s)

Lead Organisation

Dublin City University (DCU)

Lead Applicant

Not listed

Project Abstract

Cliffs act as natural barriers against coastal hazards such as storm surge flooding and extreme waves and runup; but they can also be undercut and fail as a result of hydrodynamic forcing. Rockfalls and landslides from eroding cliffs represent a significant hazard to humans and infrastructure around Ireland's rocky coasts. Understanding the complex dynamics of cliff erosion is essential for assessing and mitigating coastal hazards and for understanding future response of these systems to climate change and sea level rise. Despite their ubiquity along Ireland's coastline, rates of rock cliff recession are largely unknown, and their failure mechanics remain poorly understood. The proposed research aims to address this knowledge gap by employing multiple complementary approaches to quantify cliff erosion rates at representative locations. We will use these in a comprehensive analysis of the drivers of coastal cliff recession on Ireland's rocky shores. The proposed research will: (1) Quantify cliff recession at different temporal and spatial scales using Persistent Scatterer Interferometry Synthetic Aperture Radar (PS-InSAR) and Structure from Motion (SfM) photogrammetry. (2) Perform numerical analysis of the main factors driving coastal cliff erosion at selected sites through characterisation of rock mass properties and process-based modelling.

Grant Approved

�199,965.00

Research Hub

Climate Change

Research Theme

2. Ireland's Future Climate, its Impacts, and Adaptation Options

Start Date

01/03/2024

Initial Projected Completion Date

31/08/2026