ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Investigation of Coastal Inundation Due to a Rise
in Sea Level (Temporary and Permanent)
Fereydon Vafaee, Seyed Amir Naser Harati, Hosein Sabbaghian
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Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering,
K.N. Toosi University of Technology, Tehran, Iran
Pol. J. Environ. Stud. 2012;21(1):209-217
KEYWORDS
ABSTRACT
Population along coastal areas currently shows about three times average growth compared to other
parts of the world. On the other hand, coastal flooding is a real threat to lives and property, and it is difficult
to manage. Studies indicate that greenhouse gas emissions affect climate change and sea level rise (SLR). It
is difficult to determine the exact value of the SLR and floodplain area because of the long-term effects, complexity,
and source of uncertainties. This study attempts to calculate the SLR for the coast of Iran in the form
of future scenarios. By using geographic information system (GIS) and digital elevation models, we predicted
water level and flood depth. The high water level, which includes wind setup, wave setup, run up and permanent
SLR, was investigated during the 21st century. These factors are calculated for the coast of Iran (Bandar
Abbas) in five future scenarios based on the GIS rules. In the other view, increasing in coastal flood hazards,
population growth and land use change means that the people, property, and environment along the coastal
area will be exposed to greater inundation where improvements in coastal protection are absent or slow to
improve. The results show that the ratio of whole flood plain area from S0 (present scenario) to S4 (worse scenario)
is 3.5, but this ratio, in the case of residential flood plain, increases to 34. This means the residential area
is more affected than other land uses. This study can help coastal managers make land use change plans for
flood risk management as adequate methods.