Impacts of Severe Arctic Storms and Climate Change on Arctic Coastal Oceanographic Processes

The focus of this project is to understand coastal oceanographic processes in the southern Beaufort Sea, and the west Canadian Arctic, driven by intense storms and severe weather. This area is important because the use of the coastal marine and terrestrial environment by Canadian Northerners is an integral part of their life style, because of coastal erosion processes, related to marine storms that tend to be getting stronger. The area is undergoing hydrocarbon exploration with potential development of the nearshore within the next decade. We are making detailed studies of coastal oceanographic processes, including waves, storm surge and ocean currents, marine winds, and related nearshore coastal erosion and sediment transport effects. Changes and variability in storm tracks and intensity, associated with climate change and warming in the Beaufort-Chukchi region, can endanger coastal settlements and the expected use of coastal marine environments. Weather and climate have impacts on sediment transport, coastal erosion, waves and storm surges, which in turn impact coastal communities, lifestyle, aquatic species, and activities related to offshore resource development. Important time-scales range from a few days, for storms, to seasonal, inter-annual, decadal, and longer, in order to investigate possible climate change and variations. Important processes include changing ice cover and expanding open water surfaces, including sea ice, waves and currents.