The Littoral Sand Budget, Hawaiian Islands'
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The Littoral Sand Budget, Hawaiian Islands' THEODORE C H A MBERLA I N~ ABSTRACT : Profile surveys were made across 80 selected Hawaiian beach and nearshore environments at quarterly intervals for one and one-half years during 1962- 63. Also 70 additional beaches were measured at less freq uent intervals. Using these profiles, suppl emented by water-jet borings and measurements from aerial ph otographs, the total sand volume of each of the major H awaiian beach systems was computed. The seasonal fluctuations of these volumes were also com puted and related to the wave and littoral current regimes. The volume of littoral sand was found to be considerably less than the volume for many sandy continental areas. About 4.0 X 107 cu yd of sand is held in beach reservoirs on the seven major islands of the Hawaiian group; most is con centrated on Kauai ( 1.4 X 107 cu yd) and on Oahu (1.0 X 107 cu yd). Individ ual beaches containing more than 1 X 106 cu yd are Keawanui on Nii hau; Hana lei, Polihale-Barking Sands, and Kekaha-Nohili-Bonham on Kauai; Bellows W aimanalo on Oahu; and Papohaku on Molokai. The beaches on the island of Hawaii hold the smallest volumes of sand. Seasonal rates of erosion and accretion of beach sand reservoirs were found to be generally on the order of a few tens of cubic yards of sand per linear yard of beach per month . The higher rates were on exposed north and west coasts, with a maximum rate of several hundred cubic yards of sand per linear yard of beach per month recorded for Lumahai Beach, Kauai during 1962-63. BEACHES AR ENOT STATIC but are continually librium between accretion and erosion so that changing their composition, structure, and a constant beach sand volume is maintained. volume- seasonally, yearly, or over longer H owever, with most beaches this equilibrium periods of geologic time. N or are these beach is continually shifting so that the beach is con changes isolated phenomena. Rather, they are tinually in a state of flux, now accreting, now related, by a complex series of equilibria, with eroding. These fluctuations in the amount of the rates of sand production, alongshore trans sand held on the beach are most pronounced port, and loss. Consequently, it is possible to between seasons, reflecting the seasonal varia consider a sand beach at anyone moment in tions in the amount and types of wave energy time to be a sand reservoir connected by certain that reach the beaches. However, diurnal, exchanges of energy with its surrounding en semidiurnal, and fortnightly fluctuations in vironment. Certain of the energy relationships beach sand volumes related to the tides, yearly between the beach and its surroundings will and multi-yearly fluctuations related to long bring about a net increase in the volume of the peri od meteorological conditions, and noncydic beach: beach accretion. Oth er relationships will fluctuations, such as are caused by tsunami, are result in a net loss of sand from the beach : also common. beach erosion. In certain cases there may exist an equi- Along any stretch of coast the various factors affecting the amount of sand on the beach and 1 Hawaii Institute of Geophysics Contribution N o. in nearshore waters can be summarized, and, if 124. Man uscript received June 29, 1967. the coast is in equilibrium (i.e ., if a constant 2 Hawaii Inst itut e of Geoph ysics, University of littoral sand volume is maintained ) , these fac Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii 968 22. Presently Senior tors can be quantitatively balanced against each Oceanograph er, Ocean Science and Engineering, In c., W ashington, D . C. other. Coastal streams and rivers, coastal ero- 161 162 PACIFIC SCIENCE, Vol. XXII, April 1968 sion, biological activities, wind, etc., may ac DISCUSSION tively contribute sand; whereas paralic sedi Littoral Sand Reservoirs mentation (e.g., lagoonal, shallow neritic, trans portation of sand into deep water via submarine Sand-size material, contributed to the littoral canyons) , the transformation of beach sand sand budget by a variety of agents as discussed into beach rock, and wind are factors that are above, is transported into the nearshore zone, responsible for the loss of beach sand. moves onto and along the beach, and after a In anyone locality certain of these processes rather long and complicated journey within the many pred ominate. For example, in the Ha nearshore zone is finally transported out of that waiian Islands beach sand is primarily acquired zone into deeper water, blown inland by the through the biological activities of reef orga wind , or otherwise lost. Various reservoirs of nisms, and is primarily lost by paralic sedi sand therefore exist, corresponding to the vari mentation. N otwithstanding the particular pro ous zones or environments through which the cesses involved, if the coast is in equilibrium sand passes as it progresses toward its final de there must exist a qualitative balance between positional environment. Two types of sand the rate of sand production or input and the reservoirs are common within the Hawaiian lit rate of sand loss. Quantitative considerations toral cells: ( 1) the beach reservoir and ( 2) the of these rates and their effects upon the beach nearshore reservoir, in turn composed of reef and nearshore sand reservoirs give rise to the channel, reef flat, or river mouth. concept of a littoral sand budget, i.e., a quan titative balance under equilibrium conditions of BEACH RESE RVOIRS (COMPARISONS): Large the rates of change and volumes of beach and volumes of sand are found between mean sea nearshore sand. Basically, the littoral sand level and the upper limit of wave action on two budget can be divided into three separate parts: of the seven major islands of the Hawaiian sand input, alongshore transport, and loss. group, while on the other five the total volume However, a fourth consideration-time-must is extremely small. Moreover, the average vol frequently be introduced due to the fact that, ume of the beach sand reservoir per mile of although short term rates of input, alongshore sandy coastline varies greatly from island to transport, and loss may not balance, the coast island. The subsurface base of the beach was may yet be in perfect equilibrium over longer determined by water-jet probing; essentially it periods of time. For an example, high rates of is the contact between the beach and indurated sand input due to heavy flooding of coastal rock or cobbles. The landward limit of the streams may not balance with the loss of near beach was taken as the upper limit of wave ac shore sand over the same period of time, yet tion as determined by the beach contact with the fluctuations of this sand input may be such growing vegetation, sea cliffs , windblown that over long periods of time the rates of sand dunes, etc. The seaward edge of the beach is input, alongshore transport, and loss are in mean water level. As can be seen from Table equilibrium. 1, more than one-third of all beach sand in the Hawaiian Islands is found on the beaches Considering beaches and coasts from the of Kauai, and more than one-fourth, on the viewpoint of such a littoral sand budget, it beaches of Oahu. Together these two islands can be shown that there exist certain stretches hold 61.4% of the total beach sand found in or units of coast along which the rates of sand the State of Hawaii. input, alongshore transport, and loss are in In order to compare the intensity and/ or equilibrium and between which there is little nature of the littoral processes of the various or no exchange of nearshore sediment. Typ Hawaiian islands, it is necessary to weigh the ically, in the Hawaiian Islands these littoral total beach sand reservoir of each island by units or littoral cells are separated by rocky some parameter, such as length of coastline, promontories or long stretches of high, nearly which in turn can be related to the zone or area vertical sea cliffs around which little or no sand over which the littoral processes are active. is transported (F ig. 1). Table 1 gives the average beach reservoir vol- Littoral Sand Budget, Hawaii-CHAMBERLAIN 163 I (f) > < 0:: o o u I o oZ W u, BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITY ::IE u, o (Reef Contribution) 0:: ...J (+) (+) 0- PARALIC > U ,'\\\\1/1/ ~ 1 SEDIMENTATION (-) ~ 111'/~~=-_~~"""""_"""""""~~~1i" Uo 0:: C5 COASTAL ~, BEACHROCK(_) > ~ EROSION(+) a:: o FORMATION < CD o z :) COASTAL STREAMS o CD (+) (Hinterland Contribution) LOSSES FROM LITTORAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE LITTORAL SAND BUDGET SAND BUDGET (-) =(+) PARALIC SEDIMENTATION COASTAL STREAMS BEACHROCK FORMATION COASTAL EROSION WIND BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITY WIND FIG. 1. Hawaiian littoral cell. ume per mile of total coastline and per mile the eastern coast have very little beach sand. of sandy coastline. Comparison of these figures By far the largest sand reservoir on Kauai is shows that a real difference exists between the at Polihale (Table 3), although those at Hana beach sand reservoirs of the various islands. lei, Lumahai, and W ailua beaches are also The northwesternmost islands of Niihau and fairly large. Generally, the reservoirs are larger Kauai have the largest beach sand reservoir per to the west and north, and smaller along the mile of coastline. This large volume of beach southeastern coast. Average beach sand reser sand is reflected in the intensity or magnitude voirs computed for the remaining portions of of littoral processes not found on the remain sandy coastline are presented in Table 4. ing islands. From Niihau and Kauai there is Table 5 shows that on Oahu the largest a general decrease, in a southeasterly direction, reservoirs lie along the eastern coast adjacent to in the volume of the beach sand reservoir per the town of W aimanalo.