Tidal Prism Reduction, Backbarrier Infilling, and Inlet Closure: The Evolution of the Plum Island, MA Barrier System in Response to Slow Sea Level Rise
Christopher Hein (BU), Duncan FitzGerald (BU), Emily Carruthers (MIT/WHOI), Allen Gontz (UM-B) Byron Stone (USGS) Northeast Beaches Conference 2009 Northeast Chapter of the International Erosion Control Association
9 June 2009
Study Area: Plum Island
Merrimack River
Gulf of Maine Woods Hole
Plum Island Castle Neck
N 0
2 km
Cape Ann
Stratigraphic Database Merrimack River
Stratigraphic Data Sources:
N
0
2 km
• McIntire & Morgan, 1963, LSU Technical Report • USGS Water Supply Paper, 1963 • McCormick, 1968, Ph.D. Thesis • Hartwell, 1970, ONR Report • Rhodes, 1971, USACE Technical Memo
Parker River
• Anderson-Nichols, 1987, unpub. cores Rowley River
• Som, 1990, MS Thesis • Mass. State Boring Data
Parker River Inlet Castle Neck
• Hein et al., cores
Topographic / Bathymetric Data Sources: • US Coast & Geodetic Survey Hydrographic Survey Soundings (19531954) • Mass GIS DTM Files (2003)
Data Collection
N 0
2 km
• 20 km of Ground Penetrating Radar, 100 & 200 MHz antenna (blue lines) • 7 vibracores, max. 4 m depth (green dots) • 10 Geoprobe cores, max. 15 m (red dots) • 11 auger drill cores, max. 38 m (yellow dots)
Plum Island Stratigraphy 0 Median Grain Size Mean Grain Size
Barrier
Depth (m)
5
10
Backbarrier 15
20
Glaciomarine Clay (Presumpscot) 0
5
Grain Size (ÎŚ)
10
Well Sorted
Poorly Sorted
Sorting
Very Poorly Sorted
Plum Island Stratigraphy: Surface N 2 km
Parker River 3m+ Elevation with respect to MLW (m)
0
Merrimack River
Rowley River Plum Island River
Western edge of Plum Island barrier sands
Parker River Inlet
Ipswich River
-15 m
Tidal Range: 2.7 m Calculated Tidal Prism: 82 x 106 m3
Plum Island Stratigraphy: Backbarrier Base N 2 km
3m Elevation with respect to MLW (m)
0
-15 m (-)
Merrimack River Parker River Rowley River Ipswich River
Backbarrier Sediment Thickness N 2 km
18 m
Thickness (m)
0
0m
NET VOLUME: 850 x 106 m3
Sediment Reservoirs
Salisbury Beach: 11.9
(vol. x 106 m3)
Merrimack ETD: 0.5
Other Reservoirs: Merrimack Paleo-delta: 1300
Plum Island: 77
Offshore Holocene Sand Sheet: 121
Parker / Ipswich ETD: 2.9 Castle Neck: 4.2 Essex ETD: 0.3
Plum Island Backbarrier: 850
Coffins Beach: 8.5
Data Sources: • • • • • • • •
Barnhardt et al., 2009 Costas et al., unpub. Dougherty, 2002, MS Thesis FitzGerald et al., 2002, Geomorph Hein et al., unpub. Hubbard, 1971, MS Thesis McKinlay, 1996, MS Thesis Oldale et al., 1983, Quat. Res. ETD Volumes: inlet cross-sectional areas, Jarrett’s, O’Brien’s & Walton & Adams Relationships
Massachusetts Post-Glacial Sea Level History
Modified from Oldale et al., 1993, Quat. Res.
Evolution of Plum Island Barrier System
Modified from: FitzGerald et al., 1993, in Davis, 1993
Evolution of Plum Island Barrier System 0
Spit Progradation
100 -5
150 200
0
50 m
Spit Platform
250
-10
Modified from Hayes and Kana, 1976
Depth (m)
TWT (nS)
50
1 MHW
Evolution of Plum Island Barrier System
Evolution of Plum Island Barrier System
0
1 MHW
100 150
-4
200 250
-8
Depth (m)
TWT (nS)
50
Evolution of Plum Island Barrier System Paleo-Parker Inlet • Positioned east of modern Parker River • Geophysical & stratigraphic evidence of active inlet system • Southerly migration due to longshore current occasionally punctuated by ebb-breaching events • Eventual closure & overtopping by southerly building spit
Northern Massachusetts Calibrated Sea Level Curve
Plum Island Stratigraphy: Backbarrier Sediments N 2 km
3m+ Elevation with respect to MLW (m)
0
-15 m
Merrimack River Parker River Rowley River Ipswich River
Backbarrier Stripping + 0.5 m Volume Sediment Removed: 600 x 106 m3 Tidal Prism: 143 x 106 m3
Backbarrier Stripping Volume Sediment Removed: 660 x 106 m3 Tidal Prism: 155 x 106 m3
Backbarrier Stripping - 0.5 m Volume Sediment Removed: 723 x 106 m3 Tidal Prism: 165 x 106 m3
Backbarrier Stripping + 0.5 m Volume Sediment Removed: 600 x 106 m3 Tidal Prism: 143 x 106 m3
Backbarrier Stripping Volume Sediment Removed: 660 x 106 m3 Tidal Prism: 155 x 106 m3
Backbarrier Stripping - 0.5 m Volume Sediment Removed: 723 x 106 m3 Tidal Prism: 165 x 106 m3
Backbarrier Stripping + 0.5 m Volume Sediment Removed: 600 x 106 m3 Tidal Prism: 143 x 106 m3
Backbarrier Stripping Volume Sediment Removed: 660 x 106 m3 Tidal Prism: 155 x 106 m3
Backbarrier Stripping - 0.5 m Volume Sediment Removed: 723 x 106 m3 Tidal Prism: 165 x 106 m3
Merrimack Inlet X-C Area: 1900 m2 TP: 25 x 106 m3
Parker Inlet X-C Area: 3100 m2 TP: 40 x 106 m3
Essex Inlet X-C Area: 1700 m2 TP: 23 x 106 m3
Paleo-Merrimack Inlet X-C Area: 1200 m2 TP: 16 x 106 m3
Paleo-Parker Inlet X-C Area: 1300 m2 TP: 18 x 106 m3
Paleo-Essex Inlet X-C Area: 950 m2 TP: 13 x 106 m3
Paleo-Inlets: Combined TP: 47 x 106 m3 Combined X-C Area: 3450 m2
Backbarrier: Tidal Prism: 155 x 106 m3 Equivalent Inlet X-C Area: 13,100 m2
Residual: Tidal Prism: 108 x 106 m3 Equivalent Inlet X-C Area: 8900 m2
Paleo-Inlets: Combined TP: 47 x 106 m3 Combined X-C Area: 3450 m2
Modern Inlets: Combined TP: 88 x 106 m3 Combined X-C Area: 6700 m2
Backbarrier: Tidal Prism: 155 x 106 m3 Equivalent Inlet X-C Area: 13,100 m2
Residual: Tidal Prism: 67 x 106 m3 Equivalent Inlet X-C Area: 5300 m2
Paleo-Plum Island Inlet 1 MHW
0
100 150
-4
Depth (m)
TWT (nS)
50
200 -8
250 0
1
100
200
1300 m2
300
-10
-15 400
50 m
-20
Depth (m)
TWT (nS)
-5
Acknowledgements Funding: NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program, US Minerals Management Service, GSA Graduate Student Research Grant, AAPG Student Grant, AGU Tilford Field Studies Scholarship, BU Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program, Clare Booth Luce Foundation Field / Lab Assistants: Dr. Walter Barnhardt USGS), Mary Ellison, Carol Wilson, Christine Harrington, Dr. Susana Costas, Nicholas Cohn, Nick Howes, Brandy Rinck, Stephanie Simms, Jeff Grey (USGS), Dr. Britt Argow (Wellesley College) Parker River National Wildlife Refuge Staff