An integrated approach to quantify the impact of watershed management on coastal morphology

Coastal areas are subject to various natural- and human-induced impacts affecting water quality and morphology evolution. Regarding the latter, its correlation with watershed processes is self-evident, as natural streams in many cases constitute the largest sediment source for the coastal environment. However, literature references that study concurrently both fields (i.e. terrestrial and coastal) and their quantitative correlation are scarce. The present paper introduces and describes in detail an integrated approach to quantify the impact of watershed management on coastal morphology using numerical modeling. The core of the proposed methodology refers to a coupled-calibration approach of the watershed and the coastal models, incorporating three scenarios of data availability regarding the parameters of interest (coastal morphology, overland sediment transport and coastal sediment transport). To support the applicability of this approach, a brief presentation of its successful application for an area in North Greece is also presented. The study retains the viewpoint of Integrated Coastal Zone Management, and is deemed to provide an operational tool for future researchers and policy planners.