Figure 1. USGS Coastal Change Hazards home page ( views/cch/). This topical node of the USGS Coastal and Marine Knowledge

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1 THE COASTAL CHANGE HAZARDS NODE OF THE U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY (USGS) COASTAL AND MARINE KNOWLEDGE BANK: ONLINE SCIENTIFIC RESOURCES FOR COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT AND DISASTER PREPAREDNESS M. Dennis Krohn, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program Alan O. Allwardt, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program Frances L. Lightsom, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program Keywords: coastal hazards, coastal zone management, digital libraries, extreme storms, human impacts, hurricanes, information management, knowledge management, sea-level rise, shoreline erosion, tsunamis, wetland destruction INTRODUCTION Coastal management issues are continually affected by the interplay between natural earth processes and human activities. The location and morphology of the shoreline are influenced by sea-level changes, landslides, storms, tsunamis, earthquakes, and sediment transport. These natural processes are in turn affected by human activities to develop and maintain channels, beaches, and onshore property; extract ground water and other coastal resources; and dispose of waste materials. Describing, predicting, and providing information about these phenomena are responsibilities of the Coastal and Marine Geology Program (CMGP) of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). This CMGP scientific information, which is critical for sound management of the Nation s coastal zone and offshore waters, is now available through the Coastal Change Hazards (CCH) node of the USGS Coastal and Marine Knowledge Bank ( BACKGROUND In 1999 the National Research Council (NRC) conducted an external review of the CMGP. The final report, Science for Decisionmaking, posed a grand challenge to develop a national knowledge bank on the geologic framework of the country s coastal and marine regions (National Research Council 1999, pages 48 to 49). A subsequent NRC report viewed the USGS as a natural science and information agency (National Research Council 2001). Prompted by these NRC reports, the CMGP conducted a series of in-house workshops (e.g., Hutchinson and others 2003) leading to development of the USGS Coastal and Marine Knowledge Bank. KNOWLEDGE BANK TOOLS FOR COASTAL CHANGE HAZARDS The web-based USGS Coastal and Marine Knowledge Bank ( presents a national-scale, interdisciplinary scientific framework for understanding marine environments, the coastal zone, and coastal watersheds. As the Knowledge Bank grows, it will incorporate nodes for specific regions and selected topics. USGS Coastal Change Hazards, the first topical node, addresses hurricanes, tsunamis, sea-level rise, shoreline erosion, wetland destruction, and other issues relevant to coastal zone management and disaster preparedness. The CCH node includes six web-based tools for organizing and presenting scientific information to meet the needs of a diverse audience (Figure 1).

2 Figure 1. USGS Coastal Change Hazards home page ( views/cch/). This topical node of the USGS Coastal and Marine Knowledge Bank provides links to six web-based tools for organizing and presenting scientific information: 1) news stories; 2) a digital library; 3) a field data catalog; 4) map servers; 5) a bibliography; and 6) background science materials.

3 Digital Library The Coastal Change Hazards Digital Library (Figure 2) provides access to online information including scientific reports, maps, databases, descriptive web pages, educational materials, and institutional information. These materials have been selected for their relevance and reliability from the web sites of many governmental agencies, academic institutions, and other organizations. The CCH Digital Library is an outgrowth of the Marine Realms Information Bank ( and organizes information content under themes specific to coastal hazards. The search interface encourages users to browse a faceted classification with twelve categories, including author, agency, project, location, feature type, and topics. Map and keyword search capabilities are also offered. Figure 2. Coastal Change Hazards Digital Library ( featuring three search options, by category, region, or keyword. Field Data Catalog The Coastal Change Hazards Field Data Catalog (Figure 3) organizes information about USGS research on coastal erosion and related hazards. The CCH Field Data Catalog allows scientists to search detailed metadata records for these field activities by region, date, data type, or participant. The CCH Field Data Catalog is part of the larger CMGP InfoBank (

4 Figure 3. Portion of a metadata record from the Coastal Change Hazards Field Data Catalog, showing the track lines and other details for one cruise in a multiyear study to establish a regional sediment budget for South Carolina beaches. Internet Map Servers The Coastal Change Hazards Internet Map Servers are interactive mapping tools presenting published USGS data sets for short- and long-term shoreline change, coastal vulnerability, and coastal morphology, including many from the USGS National Assessment of Coastal Change Hazards ( The CCH Internet Map Servers provide several visualization options and are linked to downloadable GIS data and associated metadata. Bibliography The Coastal Change Hazards Bibliography includes selected publications by USGS authors and collaborators on coastal issues, principally scientific reports on studies of specific regions or coastal processes. Many entries in the CCH Bibliography link to fulltext versions for viewing or downloading from the USGS Publications Warehouse ( Topics in Coastal and Marine Sciences Using coastal erosion as the initial theme, Topics in Coastal and Marine Sciences is a new CMGP web site that presents background science information, including process descriptions, definitions, and links to complementary online resources from the USGS and other organizations. This tool is designed to help the non-specialist understand the scientific basis for making informed decisions about the coastal zone.

5 News Stories Short articles on current events and late-breaking discoveries are taken from the monthly USGS coastal science newsletter, Sound Waves ( FUTURE GROWTH Future growth of the CCH node of the Knowledge Bank is focused on developing a remote sensing geodatabase called XSTORMS (extreme STORMS), initially including oblique aerial photographs and videos from the 2004 and 2005 hurricane seasons. CONCLUSION These web-based tools, combined with the rapidly expanding data holdings at the USGS, will provide researchers, coastal managers, educators, and the public with the ability to browse, select, and organize timely information on a wide variety of coastal issues. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The USGS Coastal and Marine Knowledge Bank is a product of the CMGP Knowledge Management Project. The CCH node of the Knowledge Bank has benefited from the contributions of many CMGP scientists and information professionals. LITERATURE CITED Hutchinson, D. R., R. Sanders, and T. Faust Making USGS Information Effective in the Electronic Age. U.S. Department of the Interior, Geological Survey. Reston, VA. Open-File Report Available online: of/2003/of03-240/ National Research Council Science for Decisionmaking: Coastal and Marine Geology at the U.S. Geological Survey. National Academy Press. Washington, DC. Available online: National Research Council Future Roles and Opportunities for the U.S. Geological Survey. National Academy Press. Washington, DC. Available online: M. Dennis Krohn U.S. Geological Survey Florida Integrated Science Center 600 Fourth Street South St. Petersburg, FL Phone: (727) dkrohn@usgs.gov