CREST

About CREST

CREST will explore and combine recent advances in two scientific fields: 1) remote sensing of coastal indicators from satellite imagery and 2) geomorphologic resilience assessment of coastal systems, into an automated process for monitoring the resilience of sandy coasts. This implies translating remotely sensed eco-morphologic data to coastal barrier system states and resilience landscape dimensions (resistance, latitude, precariousness). 

The approach will be developed and tested using pilot case studies along the Portuguese and southern Spain coasts, covering a range of environmental and morphological settings, including urbanised areas. Remotely sensed eco-morphologic data and indicators for each unit (e.g., Nearshore, Foreshore, Beach and Dune), will be obtained through appropriate techniques. Shorelines and foreshore slopes extraction will be based on CoastSat, a toolkit that has achieved sub-pixel accuracies over distinct coastal settings. Dune dimensions and stability indicators will be detected sensing the vegetation signature through suitable indices (e.g., NDVI), while nearshore bathymetries will be retrieved using approaches based on band ratio algorithms. The CREST team integrates the expertise and experience, necessary to implement all phases of the project. The resilience assessment methodology, developed by members of CIMA, UL and UCA, will be the basis to translate eco-morphologic indicators into resilience dimensions, capitalising on the expertise of UNSW and CSIC on remote sensing of coastal features.