The British Geological Survey (BGS) Coasts and Estuaries aims to create a database of coastline position for the whole length of Great Britain coastlines over the period between 1984 to 2022 (38 years).
The team uses a combination of methods that include the use of innovative 4D simulation models and cost-effective monitoring approaches to quantitatively assess the effects of different adaptation options against coastal flooding and coastal erosion with an emphasis in the transition from traditional grey engineering (such as hold the line with hard defences) to more green engineering (a combination of nature based solutions and giving space to coastal processes).
However, professional Earth Observation (EO) services are needed to tackle the several challenges presented by the project, including the scale of the task, the effort required to clean spurious lines from waterline snapshots, the need for the highest spatial accuracy possible and temporal resolution to capture coastline change events both manmade and naturally occurring.
Thanks to the OCRE EO Service Funding for Research, the British Geological Survey team was able to join forces with ARGANS Ltd., a leading service provider in a fast-developing market of Earth Observation (EO) as a Service, enabling the translation of EO data into useful and public information to a broad range of coastal stakeholders
Read the full success story on the OCRE website: https://www.ocre-project.eu/success-story/assessment-coastline-change-over-last-38-years-using-satellite-eo-along-great-britain
