South Shore Coastal Hazards Characterization Atlas

The South Shore Coastal Hazards Characterization Atlas is the first in a series of atlases developed to provide local coastal managers with information that can help with the review of projects that are in areas that are vulnerable to coastal hazards. Further, it is hoped that the information provided in the Atlas will assist local reviewers with the implementation of sound coastal hazard mitigation strategies that promote the natural storm damage protection and flood control functions of coastal landforms.

For South Shore communities (from Hull to the Cape Cod Canal), the Atlas provides maps that illustrate shoreline variables at a scale of 1:40,000 and depict such features as littoral cell boundaries, short term shoreline change, shoreline type, distribution of properties with multiple federal flood insurance claims between 1978 and 2002, and beach width fronting coastal banks. Tide range, wave climate, and storm susceptibility are also characterized for the entire coast of Massachusetts, while the rate of relative sea level rise is provided for stations along the northeastern coast of the United States.

Where and How to use the Atlas

Due to the geological and geographic setting of the Massachusetts coast, implementation of effective coastal hazards mitigation strategies should be viewed initially from a regional perspective. Coastal hazard characteristics and processes can then be considered at a local level to assess individual projects and site-specific hazard mitigation strategies. This Atlas presents information for the South Shore region, for the open coasts facing Cape Cod or Massachusetts Bays. Where possible, relevant variables were also mapped for the protected shoreline along Kingston Bay, Duxbury Bay, and Plymouth Harbor. The Atlas provides an index of atlas tiles that link to 17 sections of the South Shore coastline. Each tile has multiple maps showing the individual variables for that section of shoreline. The variables include:

• Properties with Multiple Federal Flood Insurance Claims
• Historical Shoreline Change Rate
• Shoreline Type
• Dominant Coastal Processes
• Shoreline Protection Structures
• Beach Width Fronting Coastal Banks