GEOLOGY AND GEOMORPHOLOGY OF THE NEW JERSEY COAST FROM THE SANDY HOOK BAY TO CAPE MAY FABIO CASTIBLANCO GE254.

GEOLOGY

AND

GEOMORPHOLO

GY OF

THE

NEW JE

RSEY COAST

FROM

THE S

ANDY HOOK B

AY T

O

CAPE M

AY

F AB

I O C

AS

TI B

L AN

CO

GE

25

4

NEW JERSEY COAST

• Stretches from Sandy Hook to Cape May• 127 Miles

• Densely populated – Economic Focal Point

• Geologically• Extremely flat (trend that heads inland)• Composed of sediments• Erosional Coast

NEW JERSEY COASTAL PLAIN CREATION

• Pre-Pleistocene Glaciation• Cohansey Formation• Bridgeton Formation

• Pleistocene Glaciation• Pensauken Formation• Cape May Formation• Multiple facies

PRE-PLEISTOCENE ENVIRONMENTS

• Cohansey Formation

Stanford, 2005

PLEISTOCENE GLACIATION

Stanford, 2005

CURRENT SHORELINE

• Different shoreline beach types• Barrier Bar system• Back Bays

• Exposed Beaches

• EROSION• Erosion on beaches• 2.2 meters a year• Sediment transport• Directionality of transport

• Human intervention• Groins

• Sea Level Rise

EROSION- GROINS• Cape May - Groins

DEPOSITION

CURRENT EROSIONAL PATH

• Factors increasing erosion/ worsening the situation• Human intervention• Cutting off supply for replenishment • Pumping from off shore sand

• Global warming• Stronger storms• Hurricane Sandy

• Sea level rise

• Going to get worse!

SANDY AFTERMATH

USGS

SUMMARY

• The New Jersey Coast is not headed in a good direction• Erosional coast, economically developed• Under threat of erosional forces• Increasingly worse

• Can we do anything?• Short-term = Yes• Long-term = No