Maine partners update shoreline maps to improve coastal planning
Maine updated shoreline maps using NOAA data to improve coastal planning, focusing on bluffs that make up nearly half of the state’s 5,000-mile coast.
Maine’s 5,000-mile coastline includes bluffs along 48 percent of its length, yet many existing shoreline maps are over two decades old and lack current details on development, erosion, and bluff stability. Coastal planners require precise data to design resilient shoreline protection systems, prompting a collaboration between the Maine Geological Survey, Maine Sea Grant, and the University of Maine engineering group. The partners aimed to enhance the accuracy of new coastal bluff maps and refine decision-support tools for coastal management. By integrating remote-sensing data with NOAA’s land cover and Coastal Ocean Reanalysis (CORA) data, they established consistent coastal zone information.
The team extracted mean wave direction and significant wave height from CORA to analyze wave energy patterns along Maine’s entire coastline. This analysis created a baseline for understanding wave dynamics and variability, supporting hazard assessments and resilience planning. The wave data will also be incorporated into an updated version of the Maine Geological Survey’s Living Shorelines Decision Support Tool. This tool will provide more precise metrics for planning living shorelines projects.
The updated maps and tools are designed to help coastal managers make informed decisions about shoreline protection and resilience. The collaboration leveraged NOAA’s CORA data to fill gaps in existing coastal datasets, ensuring planners have access to reliable, continuous information. The project highlights the importance of accurate, up-to-date shoreline data for effective coastal management in Maine.
The new wave energy data and updated shoreline maps will directly support ongoing efforts to assess coastal hazards and plan resilient infrastructure. The Maine Geological Survey’s Living Shorelines Decision Support Tool will benefit from these improvements, enabling more accurate planning for living shorelines projects. The partners emphasized the need for consistent, high-quality data to guide coastal decision-making across Maine.