Erosion: An International Concern

Due to climate change and increased settlement along coasts, shoreline erosion has become an international concern. Shoreline erosion is plaguing ocean fronts around the world in places such as Balneario Parque Mar Chiquita in Argentina, Belongil Beach in Australia, and Bay County, Florida. Unfortunately, lakefronts are also threatened. Erosion occurs on most of the Great Lakes in the United States of America. Most of the Lakewide Mangement Plans have sections concerning shoreline erosion, including Lake Michigan. Lake Michigan's shoreline erosion includes Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore at the southern tip of Lake Michigan and the eastern coastline of Wisconsin. Ozuakee County, Wisconsin, in particular has experienced extensive erosion.

Erosion at Concordia University in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin is a popular topic in the coastal engineering course at the University of Wisconsin - Madison. Due to Bryan Haas and Caroline Ubing's peaked interest in the topic, this location was chosen for their coastal analysis design project.

Analysis of Shoreline Displacement and Lake Levels

Shoreline displacement is linked with the current lake level. Common sense dictates that the shoreline will recede with high lake levels, and progress with low lake levels, but the issue is much more complex. With high lake levels also comes more energy in the system, which can lead to larger wave heights and faster wave velocities. An intensification of wave velocities will increase the amount of sediment the wave can carry; therefore, erosion rates will increase. The purpose of this project was to analyze the correlation of lake levels with shoreline displacement rates along the Lake Michigan Coast in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin. We calculated the shoreline position and displacement rates by analyzing past aerial photographs. We then compared our results to historical Lake Michigan water level data.