Times are displayed in (UTC-05:00) Central Time (US & Canada) Change

248-6 Assessing Coastal Hazard Vulnerability of National Park Service Infrastructure on the Great Lakes

Session: Expanding Geology’s Horizons: Geoinformatics, Open Science, and Open Data

Presenting Author:

Blair Tormey

Authors:

Tormey, Blair R.¹, Young, Robert S.², Peek, Katie M.³, Thompson, Holli⁴

(1) Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC, USA, (2) Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC, USA, (3) Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC, USA, (4) Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC, USA,

Abstract:

Western Carolina University (WCU), in partnership with the National Park Service (NPS), has developed a methodology for assessing the vulnerability of NPS infrastructure to coastal hazards on ocean coastlines. The protocol standardizes the methods and data used, allowing managers to compare the vulnerability of assets across local, regional, and national levels. Analysis is built in an ArcGIS enviroment and integrated with the NPS asset management database, with output products in Excel, GIS, and Google Earth. This protocol is not a standard GIS hazard mapping exercise but instead relies heavily on geologic ground-truthing of exposure datasets and detailed evaluation of sensitivity for each individual asset. Over the past decade, this protocol has been used to assess almost 10,000 assets in over 70 national parks.

The Great Lakes experience a wide array of coastal hazards similar to, and distinct from, those of ocean shorelines. To evaluate the vulnerability of NPS buildings and transportation assets in Great Lakes parks, WCU modified and adapted its ocean coastal protocol. The Great Lakes protocol evaluates vulnerability (as a combination of exposure and sensitivity) based on five coastal hazards: flooding potential, shoreline change, lake-level rise, extreme event flooding (e.g., seiches), and reported coastal hazards.

Pilot studies have been completed at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, with assessments underway at six additional Great Lakes national parks. With the completion of these vulnerability assessments, the NPS will have taken a critical step toward developing, and implementing long-term resilience and adaption plans for vulnerable Great Lakes infrastructure.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Program. Vol. 57, No. 6, 2025

doi: 10.1130/abs/2025AM-10048

Assessing Coastal Hazard Vulnerability of National Park Service Infrastructure on the Great Lakes

Description

Session Format: Oral

Presentation Date: 10/22/2025

Presentation Start Time: 09:55 AM

Presentation Room: HBGCC, 301C

Back to Session