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Sea-level rise will likely accelerate rock coast cliff retreat rates

Shadrick, J. R., Rood, D. H., Hurst, M. D. , Piggott, M. D., Hebditch, B. G., Seal, A. J. and Wilcken, K. M. (2022) Sea-level rise will likely accelerate rock coast cliff retreat rates. Nature Communications, 13, 7005. (doi: 10.1038/s41467-022-34386-3) (PMID:36400787)

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Abstract

Coastal response to anthropogenic climate change is of central importance to the infrastructure and inhabitants in these areas. Despite being globally ubiquitous, the stability of rock coasts has been largely neglected, and the expected acceleration of cliff erosion following sea-level rise has not been tested with empirical data, until now. We have optimised a coastal evolution model to topographic and cosmogenic radionuclide data to quantify cliff retreat rates for the past 8000 years and forecast rates for the next century. Here we show that rates of cliff retreat will increase by up to an order of magnitude by 2100 according to current predictions of sea-level rise: an increase much greater than previously predicted. This study challenges conventional coastal management practices by revealing that even historically stable rock coasts are highly sensitive to sea-level rise and should be included in future planning for global climate change response.

Item Type:Articles
Additional Information:This work was supported by a studentship from the Natural Environmental Research Council (NERC) Science and Solutions for a Changing Planet Doctoral Training Partnership (DTP), with additional funding by the British Geological Survey (BGS) to J.R.S. We acknowledge the support of ANSTO Research Portal award 10955 to D.H.R.
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Hurst, Dr Martin
Authors: Shadrick, J. R., Rood, D. H., Hurst, M. D., Piggott, M. D., Hebditch, B. G., Seal, A. J., and Wilcken, K. M.
College/School:College of Science and Engineering > School of Geographical and Earth Sciences
Journal Name:Nature Communications
Publisher:Nature Research
ISSN:2041-1723
ISSN (Online):2041-1723
Copyright Holders:Copyright © 2022 The Authors
First Published:First published in Nature Communications 13: 7005
Publisher Policy:Reproduced under a Creative Commons License
Related URLs:
Data DOI:10.5281/zenodo.5645478

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