@article{velasquez-montoya_wargula_tomiczek_sciaudone_smyre_2023, title={Modeling the hydrodynamics of a tidal inlet during bay-side storms}, volume={280}, ISSN={["1096-0015"]}, DOI={10.1016/j.ecss.2022.108145}, abstractNote={Bay-side storms, defined here as storms with tracks on the landward side of barrier islands, may disturb the hydrodynamics of inner bays to a larger extent than on the ocean side. These storms are common in large-scale O(>100,000 m) estuarine systems and have the potential to modify the circulation in bays and within tidal inlets. Here, we provide an overview of the hydrodynamic response of a tidal inlet under forcings caused by bay-side storms and explore the role of waves in modulating the release of storm surge from the back-barrier regions into the ocean. A two-dimensional horizontal numerical model including wave-current interactions is calibrated and validated against field observations of water levels and depth-averaged velocities at Oregon Inlet, NC. The model is then used to investigate the effect of synthetic bay-side storms with varying wave conditions and water levels based on those generated by Hurricane Irene (2011), which is the strongest bay-side storm to hit the Outer Banks of North Carolina in the last two decades. Effect of timing of the peak storm surge during the ebb and flood phases of the tide is also explored. Results from synthetic storms indicate that, during bay-side storms, the water level gradient along the inlet favors ebbing flows regardless of the timing of the storms relative to tidal phase. These results suggest that waves might be responsible for any influx of volume to the bay during high bay-side surge events. Wave blocking effects were found to be stronger along the ebb shoal and only reached the flood delta when bay water levels were nearly the same as the ocean water levels. Reduction of currents by waves in the inlet have the potential to extend the duration of the inundation period in the back barrier region. Bay-side storms also caused flux enhancement over inlet shoals and channels in the flood delta, which could have implications for circulation patterns as well as the morphodynamics of the system.}, journal={ESTUARINE COASTAL AND SHELF SCIENCE}, author={Velasquez-Montoya, Liliana and Wargula, Anna and Tomiczek, Tori and Sciaudone, Elizabeth J. and Smyre, Elizabeth}, year={2023}, month={Jan} }
 @article{behr_berglund_sciaudone_2022, title={Effectiveness of indicators for assessing the vulnerability of barrier island highways}, volume={105}, ISSN={["1879-2340"]}, DOI={10.1016/j.trd.2022.103234}, abstractNote={Highways along barrier islands are highly susceptible to storm impacts like overwash, erosion, and island breaching. The present research evaluates the effectiveness of 14 morphological indicators in predicting highway vulnerability to storm impacts from a data set of seven storms with documented roadway impacts. Multi-indicator functions were also developed and assessed. The research finds that distance from edge-of-pavement to dune toe, volume above mean high water between edge-of-pavement and ocean shoreline, distance from edge-of-pavement to ocean shoreline, and dune crest height above the road are the most skilled individual indicators of highway vulnerability. A multi-indicator function of dune toe elevation and distance from edge-of-pavement to dune toe is more skilled than any of the individual indicators that were evaluated. Some of these indicators can be projected to assess future vulnerability, as well. The results convey the value of geomorphology-based indicators and their potential in larger-scale coastal infrastructure vulnerability assessments.}, journal={TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH PART D-TRANSPORT AND ENVIRONMENT}, author={Behr, Adam and Berglund, Emily and Sciaudone, Elizabeth}, year={2022}, month={Apr} }
 @article{velasquez-montoya_wargula_nangle_sciaudone_smyre_tomiczek_2022, title={Hydrodynamics of a tidal inlet under gray to green coastal protection interventions}, volume={10}, ISSN={["2296-6463"]}, DOI={10.3389/feart.2022.991667}, abstractNote={Structural coastal protection interventions have been implemented worldwide to stabilize channels and shorelines in tidal inlets. Although these conventional “gray” interventions typically attain their goals, there is an increasing interest and need to consider nature-based or “green” interventions that also address system resilience and environmental impacts. For a better implementation of gray to green interventions in tidal inlets, their effectiveness and their effects on the velocity of these dynamic coastal systems need to be understood. The effects on flow velocity of gray to green coastal protection interventions for tidal inlets are assessed here by exploring six interventions intended to protect against erosion on the estuarine-side shoreline near the inlet. A field-calibrated numerical model with Willmott Skill scores rated as excellent for Oregon Inlet located in North Carolina, United States, is used to simulate tidal currents under present conditions and after implementing a seawall, a set of bendway weirs, a terminal groin extension, a dual-jetty system, a flood channel relocation, and an island restoration project. Comparisons of time series of flow velocities in the flood channel along an eroding, estuarine shoreline are used to identify the effectiveness of each coastal protection alternative at reducing erosive velocities. Geospatial difference maps are used to determine velocity changes caused by each alternative throughout the inlet system. With no coastal protection interventions, the velocities along the eroding shoreline exceeded an erosive threshold velocity (defined as 0.2 m/s) during 50% of the simulated period. Alternatives closer to the green side of the coastal protection intervention spectrum, such as channel relocation and island restoration, tend to display the most effectiveness at reducing flow velocities at the eroding shoreline while resulting in minimal inlet-wide hydrodynamic changes. On the other hand, gray alternatives either cause minimal (seawall and bendway weirs) or extreme (jetties) changes in velocities throughout the inlet system. This comparison of gray and green coastal protection interventions in tidal inlets serves as an example to contrast the effectiveness of different coastal protection alternatives at reducing erosive flow velocities and to inform alternative selection at other inlet systems.}, journal={FRONTIERS IN EARTH SCIENCE}, author={Velasquez-Montoya, Liliana and Wargula, Anna and Nangle, Jessica and Sciaudone, Elizabeth and Smyre, Elizabeth and Tomiczek, Tori}, year={2022}, month={Oct} }
 @article{pesantez_behr_sciaudone_2022, title={Importance of Pre-Storm Morphological Factors in Determination of Coastal Highway Vulnerability}, volume={10}, ISSN={["2077-1312"]}, url={https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse10081158}, DOI={10.3390/jmse10081158}, abstractNote={This work considers a database of pre-storm morphological factors and documented impacts along a coastal roadway. Impacts from seven storms, including sand overwash and pavement damage, were documented via aerial photography. Pre-storm topography was examined to parameterize the pre-storm morphological factors likely to control whether stormwater levels and waves impact the road. Two machine learning techniques, K-nearest neighbors (KNN) and ensemble of decision trees (EDT), were employed to identify the most critical pre-storm morphological factors in determining the road vulnerability, expressed as a binary variable to impact storms. Pre-processing analysis was conducted with a correlation analysis of the predictors’ data set and feature selection subroutine for the KNN classifier. The EDTs were built directly from the data set, and feature importance estimates were reported for all storm events. Both classifiers report the distances from roadway edge-of-pavement to the dune toe and ocean as the most important predictors of most storms. For storms approaching from the bayside, the width of the barrier island was the second most important factor. Other factors of importance included elevation of the dune toe, distance from the edge of pavement to the ocean shoreline, shoreline orientation (relative to predominant wave angle), and beach slope. Compared to previously reported optimization techniques, both machine learning methods improved using pre-storm morphological data to classify highway vulnerability based on storm impacts.}, number={8}, journal={JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING}, publisher={MDPI AG}, author={Pesantez, Jorge E. and Behr, Adam and Sciaudone, Elizabeth}, year={2022}, month={Aug} }
 @article{tomiczek_sciaudone_velasquez-montoya_smyre_wargula_fawcett_torres_2022, title={Investigation of Barrier Island Highway and Marsh Vulnerability to Bay-Side Flooding and Erosion}, volume={10}, ISSN={["2077-1312"]}, DOI={10.3390/jmse10060734}, abstractNote={Coastal highways along narrow barrier islands are vulnerable to flooding due to ocean and bay-side events, which create hazardous travel conditions and may restrict access to surrounding communities. This study investigates the vulnerability of a segment of highway passing through the Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge in the Outer Banks, North Carolina, USA. Publicly available data, computational modeling, and field observations of shoreline change are synthesized to develop fragility models for roadway flooding and marsh conditions. At 99% significance, peak daily water levels and significant wave heights at nearby monitoring stations are determined as significant predictors of roadway closure due to flooding. Computational investigations of bay-side storms identify peak water levels and the buffer distance between the estuarine shoreline and the roadway as significant predictors of roadway transect flooding. To assess the vulnerability of the marsh in the buffer area, a classification scheme is proposed and used to evaluate marsh conditions due to long-term and episodic (storm) stressors. Marsh vulnerability is found to be predicted by the long-term erosion rate and distance from the shoreline to the 5 m depth contour of the nearby flood tidal channel. The results indicate the importance of erosion mitigation and marsh conservation to enhance the resilience of coastal transportation infrastructure.}, number={6}, journal={JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING}, author={Tomiczek, Tori and Sciaudone, Elizabeth J. J. and Velasquez-Montoya, Liliana and Smyre, Elizabeth and Wargula, Anna and Fawcett, Kelly and Torres, Joshua}, year={2022}, month={Jun} }
 @article{velasquez-montoya_sciaudone_harrison_overton_2021, title={Land cover changes on a barrier island: Yearly changes, storm effects, and recovery periods}, volume={135}, ISSN={["1873-7730"]}, DOI={10.1016/j.apgeog.2021.102557}, abstractNote={Ecosystems on barrier islands provide socio-ecological services to terrestrial and aquatic endangered species, as well as human inhabitants. The management of these coastal ecosystems is challenged by changes in annual and storm time scales driven by atmospheric, oceanographic, geologic, and human processes. Thus, the need for data and methods to accurately quantify and assess ecosystem and land cover evolution to inform stakeholders is on the rise. A dataset of high-resolution color infrared images of a U.S. National Wildlife Refuge is used to quantify annual land cover changes at a barrier island scale and to identify the effects of hurricanes and their recovery periods. Geospatial analysis and change matrices depict the interconnection between 13 land cover classes. Vegetation growth over regions of bare sand formed by storms leads to the creation of successional habitats, while the loss of bare sand dune to beach, and beach to water are indicators of erosional processes. Storms passing along the ocean and sound side of a barrier island result in different land cover changes that can last anywhere from 4 to more than 7 years, respectively. Management practices for coastal regions and the presence of infrastructure partially control the expansion of marshes, bare sand, maritime brush, and dunes.}, journal={APPLIED GEOGRAPHY}, author={Velasquez-Montoya, Liliana and Sciaudone, Elizabeth J. and Harrison, Rebecca B. and Overton, Margery}, year={2021}, month={Oct} }
 @article{velasquez-montoya_sciaudone_smyre_overton_2021, title={Vulnerability Indicators for Coastal Roadways Based on Barrier Island Morphology and Shoreline Change Predictions}, volume={22}, ISSN={["1527-6996"]}, DOI={10.1061/(ASCE)NH.1527-6996.0000441}, abstractNote={AbstractCoastal roadways are vulnerable to changes in landscape that occur at variable spatiotemporal scales. In particular, highways on barrier islands suffer the consequences of the combined acti...}, number={2}, journal={NATURAL HAZARDS REVIEW}, author={Velasquez-Montoya, Liliana and Sciaudone, Elizabeth J. and Smyre, Elizabeth and Overton, Margery F.}, year={2021}, month={May} }
 @article{velasquez-montoya_overton_sciaudone_2020, title={Natural and anthropogenic-induced changes in a tidal inlet: Morphological evolution of Oregon Inlet}, volume={350}, ISSN={["1872-695X"]}, DOI={10.1016/j.geomorph.2019.106871}, abstractNote={Natural processes driving the dynamics of tidal inlets have been studied in length, however, as human influence in the coastal environment persists, there is a need to comprehend how both natural and human-induced processes drive different aspects of tidal inlet morphological evolution. An effort to understand the combined effects of natural and anthropogenic-induced processes in a tidal inlet is pursued by studying Oregon Inlet, considered one of the most dynamic inlets in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, USA. The temporal and spatial scales of the anthropogenic processes driving the morphological evolution of this tidal inlet are studied by means of remotely sensed data and in-situ observations gathered from 2005 until 2015. Effects of natural process that cannot be gathered from observations are studied via a morphological model based on Delft3D. Evolutional trends include the cyclical response of the main channel of the inlet to dredging, a 13° northward rotation of the main channel, and frequent sediment transport reversal in the southern shoulder. Simulations indicate a net sediment transport rate into the inlet of 205,000 m3/yr. Tidal currents are responsible for 55% of such transport, while waves account for the remaining 45%. After a 2-year non-dredging modeling scenario, sediments from the subaqueous spit form a detached shoal in the north side of the flood delta and the main channel remains open branching into two dominant channels. Observations and model results indicate that Oregon Inlet has been in a state of stable equilibrium in the past decade. Natural and human-induced processes contribute to such equilibrium. This study exemplifies the decadal behavior of a tidal inlet influenced by natural processes, infrastructure, and dredging.}, journal={GEOMORPHOLOGY}, author={Velasquez-Montoya, Liliana and Overton, Margery F. and Sciaudone, Elizabeth J.}, year={2020}, month={Feb} }
 @article{velasquez montoya_sciaudone_mitasova_overton_2018, title={Observation and modeling of the evolution of an ephemeral storm-induced inlet: Pea Island Breach, North Carolina, USA}, volume={156}, ISSN={0278-4343}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.csr.2018.02.002}, DOI={10.1016/j.csr.2018.02.002}, abstractNote={The Outer Banks of North Carolina is a wave-dominated barrier island system that has experienced the opening and closure of numerous inlets in the last four centuries. The most recent of those inlets formed after the breaching of Pea Island during Hurricane Irene in 2011. The Pea Island Breach experienced a rapid evolution including episodic curvature of the main channel, rotation of the ebb channel, shoaling, widening by Hurricane Sandy in 2012, and finally closing before the summer of 2013. Studying the life cycle of Pea Island Breach contributes to understanding the behavior of ephemeral inlets in breaching-prone regions. This topic has gained relevance due to rising sea levels, a phenomenon that increases the chances of ephemeral inlet formation during extreme events. This study explores the spatiotemporal effects of tides, waves, and storms on flow velocities and morphology of the breach by means of remotely sensed data, geospatial metrics, and a numerical model. The combined use of observations and results from modeling experiments allowed building a conceptual model to explain the life cycle of Pea Island Breach. Wave seasonality dominated the morphological evolution of the inlet by controlling the magnitude and direction of the longshore current that continuously built transient spits at both sides of the breach. Sensitivity analysis to external forcings indicates that ocean waves can modify water levels and velocities in the back barrier. Sound-side storm surge regulates overall growth rate, duration, and decay of peak water levels entering the inlet during extreme events.}, journal={Continental Shelf Research}, publisher={Elsevier BV}, author={Velasquez Montoya, Liliana and Sciaudone, Elizabeth J. and Mitasova, Helena and Overton, Margery F.}, year={2018}, month={Mar}, pages={55–69} }
 @inproceedings{sciaudone_pirrello_brotman_crist_white_rosenberg_2005, title={Post-Isabel Dune Reconstruction, Norfolk, Virginia}, ISBN={9780784407745}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1061/40774(176)16}, DOI={10.1061/40774(176)16}, abstractNote={The City of Norfolk, Virginia was severely impacted by Hurricane Isabel in September 2003. The storm's waves and surge caused major beach erosion and nearly removed the protective dune in many areas across the City's shoreline. The City evaluated the condition of the shoreline after the storm and decided to implement a dune restoration project along approximately 5.5 km of the Ocean View shoreline from 14th View Street to Warwick Avenue. The project consisted of a protective dune designed to resist a 5-year return period storm, with additional material placed on the beach. Project construction began December 15, 2004. This paper details the analysis of the anticipated performance of that project, including SBEACH modeling and shoreline change analysis. Results indicate that while some adjustment of the berm is expected during the first year as the project equilibrates, it is anticipated that the dune fill will remain in place assuming no significant storm impacts. Considering long-term shoreline change rates, the mean high water line may retreat back to pre-project conditions in 2.5 to 3 years in several localized "hot spots" and 5 to 6 years in other areas, without storm impacts. Should a storm similar in magnitude to Hurricane Isabel occur during the project life, SBEACH modeling results indicate that more than half of the dune volume may be lost offshore or pushed landward. Although some remnant dune protection may remain, the occurrence of a storm of this magnitude would necessitate additional dune restoration in the project area.}, booktitle={Solutions to Coastal Disasters 2005}, publisher={American Society of Civil Engineers}, author={Sciaudone, E. J. and Pirrello, M. A. and Brotman, I. and Crist, M. and White, J. D. and Rosenberg, L.}, year={2005}, month={May} }