Canadian Coastal Information System (CIS) - Foreshore, Beaufort Sea Coast 1984, 1999 and 2000

Shore-zone classification data for the Canadian Beaufort Sea coast form part of a GIS database, the Coastal Information System (CIS), developed and maintained by the Geological Survey of Canada (GSC-Atlantic), Natural Resources Canada, at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography in Dartmouth, NS. Coastal attributes in the CIS have been interpreted and mapped from low-level, oblique, aerial photography and video imagery with accompanying audio commentary. The CIS is hierarchical in that coastal forms are classified based on four increasingly detailed levels of description. The coastal data consist of line segments with attributes describing the physical form and material at scales ranging from 1:10 000 to 1:250 000. In the CIS, the coast is divided into three shore-parallel zones (backshore, foreshore, nearshore). Each zone is segmented separately based on homogeneous physical characteristics. A glossary has been developed to control the language used to describe each zone. The use of objective physical criteria for coastal classification enhances the utility of the CIS for a wide variety of applications. The foreshore is defined as the seaward-sloping zone of the shore or beach lying between higher high-water and lower low-water at large (spring) tides. It is the intertidal zone regularly covered and uncovered by the rise and fall of the tide. Typical mapped foreshore forms include slopes, beaches, shore platforms, tidal flats, or wetlands, as well as artificial forms such as docks, ramps, seawalls, revetments, or other shore protection forms. Materials include combinations of ice, organics, mud, sand, gravel and boulders, rock, or artificial materials such as concrete, wood, or steel. Combinations of zonal form and material types can be queried to build more sophisticated classifications based on multiple criteria or empirical indices. For more information please refer to the datafile entitled: CCIN12120_20150218_Foreshore_Extended_Metadata_FGDC.xml