Beach dynamics and recreational access changes on an earthquake-uplifted coast
Creators: name: Orchard, Shane
name: Falconer, Thomas
name: Fischman, Hallie
name: Schiel, David R.
Publisher: name: figshare
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: 60302 Biogeography and Phylogeography
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: 50202 Conservation and Biodiversity
subject: 50204 Environmental Impact Assessment
subject: FOS: Earth and related environmental sciences
subject: FOS: Earth and related environmental sciences
subject: 50205 Environmental Management
subject: 50206 Environmental Monitoring
subject: 50104 Landscape Ecology
subject: 40604 Natural Hazards
subject: 50209 Natural Resource Management
subject: 50211 Wildlife and Habitat Management
subject: 40313 Tectonics

description: This report responds to a request from Marlborough District Council (MDC) for information on the coastal environment, with a particular focus on supporting the development of a bylaw to address changes in recreational use patterns that have occurred since the Kaikōura earthquake. We present a selection of information from our earthquake recovery research that has a focus on understanding the impacts and ongoing processes of change. Major impacts of the natural disaster are associated with vertical uplift of the coastal environment, although ongoing erosion and deposition processes are also important.<br>Interactions with human activities are also important because they can exert strong influences on the reassembly of ecosystems which is a critical aspect of outcomes over the longer-term. Earthquake uplift caused widespread mortality of many coastal habitats and species (e.g., algal assemblages) that are adapted to a relatively specific set of conditions, often associated with characteristic locations in relation to the tidal range. In uplifted areas the intertidal zone has moved seaward leading to a physical widening of many beaches. This has provided greater opportunity for off-road vehicle access to the coast and has become particularly noticeable at headlands and other natural barriers that were previously impassable at high tide. Off-road vehicles pose threats to sensitive vegetation and wildlife unless appropriately managed. Achieving this is assisted by an understanding of the specific impacts of vehicle use, which in turn requires information on the location of sensitive areas.<br>To ensure the best outcomes for earthquake recovery there is an urgent need to assess and respond to the new spatial patterns, and to make plans to avoid conflicts where possible. In our RECOVER (Reef Ecology and Coastal Values, Earthquake Recovery) project funded by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) and supported by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) we are collecting information on important conservation values and activities. Although research is continuing, this report provides findings that include mapping of indigenous dune system remnants, recruitment of the indigenous sand-binders spinifex (<i>Spinifex sericeus</i>) and pīngao (<i>Ficinia spiralis</i>) on uplifted beaches, distribution of red katipō (<i>Latrodectus katipo</i>) within earthquake-affected dune systems, distribution of banded dotterel / pohowera (Charadrius bicinctus bicinctus) nesting pairs to determine important areas, and spatial overlaps with vehicle tracking measurements along the coast.<br>ISBN 978-0-473-54390-7 (Print)ISBN 978-0-473-54392-1 (Online)