Search

The densely populated coast of the Gulf of Guinea (GoG) is experiencing escalating erosion from climate change (CC). To assess Longshore Sediment Transport (LST) changes in the past and future, an empirical formula was used to model the GoG's LST. Nearshore wave conditions, crucial for LST estimation, were derived by projecting significant wave height, mean wave period, and mean wave direction from deep water to the breaker zone. These wave conditions were used as input for LST computation. Analysing three time slices: Past (1979–2005), mid-century (2026–2045), and end-century (2081–2100) under RCPs 4.5 and 8.5, results indicate continuous increase in LST in most locations, with local and seasonal variations. LST magnitudes range from 104 to 105 m3y−1 in the GoG, with the Cameroonian coast having the least. This aligns with the rising wave energy from CC. LST directions are predominantly eastward, though some locations, like off Lagos and Cameroon-Gabon coasts, show westward trend, correlating with coastal orientation influenced by southward wave directions. RCP 8.5 projections suggest mid-century increase, intensifying by end of century, with yearly rates of change around 103 m3y−1 and future LST changes up to 105 m3y−1. This situation implies accelerated sediment removal, heightening erosion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study identifies and summarizes potential risks to operations, regulatory compliance, supply chains, and infrastructure of the electric power industry from changing surface water conditions resulting from global climate change. The results help inform companies/utilities seeking to incorporate climate change risk in their planning and decision‐making processes by ranking risk severity and likelihood of occurrence on both a regional basis and by risk receptor. The assessment includes identification of potential risks to: (1) thermal generating, (2) hydroelectric, (3) land‐based renewable generating, and (4) transmission and distribution assets. These risks may result from such projected changes as reduced water availability (e.g., for hydroelectric or once‐through cooling), increased water temperatures (e.g., decrease in cooling efficiency, inability to meet discharge permit conditions), increased flood severity (e.g., increased streambank erosion and/or damage to river‐adjacent infrastructure), and decreased water quality (e.g., from increased transport of sediment and dissolved solids). The potential risks identified from this qualitative risk‐assessment are documented in a graphical format depicting both severity and likelihood. This approach allows for comparison of risks across a portfolio and for future prioritization of adaptation strategies. A total of 32 risks were identified in the study, including nine risks to infrastructure, six risks to operations, four risks to supply chain, and 13 environmental/regulatory risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Atolls islands are biogenic landforms that are intrinsically capable of adjusting their size, position, and elevation to changing sea levels. The vulnerability of atoll islands to sea level rise is not intrinsically due to their low elevation but primarily due to the loss of their island building capacity. The geophysical processes that control atoll island accretion are being impacted on global and local scales. Protecting and restoring the natural geophysical processes of atoll island accretion through local conservation actions is key to unlocking nature-based opportunities for enhancing atoll resilience to global change. Atoll islands are often perceived as inevitably lost due to rising sea levels. However, unlike other islands, atoll islands are dynamic landforms that have evolved, at least historically, to vertically accrete at a pace commensurate with changing sea levels. Rather than atoll islands' low elevation per se , the impairment of natural accretion processes is jeopardising their persistence. While global marine impacts are deteriorating coral reefs, local impacts also significantly affect accretion, together potentially tipping the scales toward atoll island erosion. Maintaining atoll island accretion requires intact sediment generation on coral reefs, unobstructed sediment transport from reef to island, and available vegetated deposition sites on the island. Ensuring the persistence of atoll islands must include global greenhouse gas emission reduction and local restoration of accretion processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shorelines face growing threats due to climate change and diminishing sand supply. Coastal headlands, common rocky features along coastlines, are crucial in shaping hydrodynamics and sediment transport. Yet, the influence of future climate conditions, including sea‐level rise (SLR) and intensified storm energy on complex shorelines with headlands has remained relatively unexplored. In this study, we model changes in hydrodynamics and headland bypassing under different SLR and higher storm wave scenarios. Our findings reveal the formation of circulation cells on both sides of a headland, where wave energy converges around the headland zone. Future climate conditions result in larger storm waves on the beach. However, SLR enhances nearshore currents through a landward shifting of the circulation cells, while higher storm waves intensify offshore flow currents due to the seaward movement of the cells. This effect, in turn, increases the potential for headland sediment bypassing. Plain Language Summary: Coastal headlands, prominent rocky features along open coastlines, play a crucial role in protecting nearby beaches from strong waves and erosion. They also affect how sand is exchanged between different beaches. We use a model to explore how future climate conditions including sea‐level rise (SLR) and larger storm waves influence coastal waves, littoral currents, and the transport of sand around headlands. Our findings reveal that headlands converge wave energy forming circulation flow cells. SLR results in stronger nearshore currents, driven by the landward movement of the rotating flow cells. In contrast, larger storm waves can move the rotating flow cells seaward, thereby increasing offshore current strength and the potential for sand transport around the headland. Understanding how coastal waves, flow and sediment transport change under future climate conditions will help determine coastal resilience. Key Points: The formation of circulation cells and wave energy convergence around headlands during storms reduce bottom shear stress at the beachSea‐level rise increases wave heights, currents, and bed shear stress in the nearshore because of landward shifting of the circulation cellsHigher storm waves expand the surf zone, shift circulation cells seaward, and enhance potential headland sediment bypassing [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Algeria, a semi-arid Mediterranean country, is distinguished by a more marked interannual variability in solid inputs compared to liquid inputs. This study aimed to comprehensively analyze hydrometeorological variables, such as rainfall, suspended sediment load, and flood flows in the Wadi Mina basin (6048 km2), using both traditional and advanced statistical techniques. These techniques included the MK trend tests MMK, and TFPWMK, as well as newer methods such as ITA and IPTA. To identify breakpoints, the CUSUM test and the SQ-MK test were used. The study was based on monthly data covering 40 years of rainfall (1970–2010) and 41 years of data on flood flows and suspended sediment load (1969–2010). The results indicated stable annual rainfall across the stations, suggesting a consistent rainfall regime over time. However, notable variability in sediment loads and flood flows was observed, with stations like Ain Hamara, Sidi Aek Djilali, and Wadi El Abtal displaying marked decreases in annual sediment loads, hinting at effective erosion control or natural attenuation of erosive processes. In contrast, a significant increase in flood events was recorded at Ain Hamara, attributed to climatic fluctuations or land use changes affecting runoff. Monthly analyses further demonstrated the enhanced sensitivity of ITA and IPTA over traditional methods, effectively uncovering subtle trends not detected by MK, MMK, and TFPWMK. For example, increasing rainfall trends during winter at Takhmert station and significant sediment transport patterns at Ain Hamara during colder months suggested dynamic seasonal hydrological behaviors. Additionally, critical insights into abrupt changes were revealed through CUSUM and SQ-MK tests, such as a pivotal shift in flood regimes at Takhmert in 2003 and a critical change in rainfall patterns at Ain Hamara in 2008, necessitating adjustments in water management and agricultural practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study reveals the morphological transformations of a deep-water channel system within the Rakhine Basin in the northeastern Bay of Bengal through a comprehensive analysis of high-resolution 3D seismic data integrated with drilling logs. Employing the "source-channel-sink" paradigm, this investigation examined the impact of various factors, including tectonic transformations, sediment influx, slope dynamics, climatic changes, and relative sea-level fluctuations, on the evolutionary trajectory of these channel systems. Applying precise time-slicing techniques integrating root-mean-square amplitude attributes, coherent amplitude attributes, and horizontal amplitudes on seismic profiles, this investigation recognized three distinct stages in the evolution of channel-levee complexes (CLCs): the Middle Miocene erosional deep-water channel-levee complex (CLC-1), the Pliocene erosional-depositional deep-water channel-levee complex (CLC-2), and the Pleistocene depositional deep-water channel-levee complex (CLC-3). Comparative analysis revealed that the CLC-3 exhibits unique characteristics, including shallower channel depth (D), wider channel width (W C), extensive U-shaped cross-sectional area (S), broader natural levee width (W L) and height (H), and the highest tortuosity coefficient (L C /L S) when contrasted with the other two CLCs. Furthermore, this study substantiated how tectonic processes, primarily the collision between the Indo-Eurasian plates, resulting in the Himalayan and Indo-Burma Range orogenies, have shaped the region's geological and climatic framework, thereby influencing monsoon circulation and precipitation patterns, which in turn augmented detrital material influx into the basin. Moreover, this tectonic collision has led to gradual changes in the slope gradient of the Rakhine Basin and its deep-water areas, impacting internal flow velocities and channel curvature, thus governing deep-water channel systems' development and spatial distribution. Also, episodic sea level fluctuations were identified as significant contributors to sediment transport from shelves to deep-water regions and sediment deposit reworking. Overall, this study underscores the role of tectonic changes after the Eocene in driving the evolutionary dynamics of the deep-water channel system within the Rakhine Basin, Myanmar. [Display omitted] • Indo-Eurasian plate collision shaped the deep-water channel systems in the Rakhine Basin. • 3D seismic data reveals three evolutionary stages in these deep-water channel systems. • Pleistocene depositional channel-levee complex exhibits unique physical characteristics. • Tectonically affected slope dynamics have directed the channels' evolutionary dynamics. • Episodic sea level fluctuations have also supported these morphological transformations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Holocene sedimentary history of the Turbio River valley in semi-arid north-central Chile and its relationship to climate variability is presented in this study. Fluvial landforms and sedimentary deposits serve as essential records for studying the long-term dynamics of fluvial systems in response to external factors such as tectonic and climatic influences. The study area, located in the Andean Mountain range, is highly sensitive to hydrodynamic changes and sediment transport processes, making it suitable for studying fluvial dynamics and their relationship to climate fluctuations over millennia. In particular, the transitional semi-arid conditions of this region provide an opportunity to link Holocene fluvial sediments to climatic shifts. This study presents the analysis of well-preserved sedimentary deposits that outcrop along the valley walls, including grain-size distribution, stratigraphy, geochemical composition and radiocarbon dating to establish the chronological context. Facies association analysis, along with geochemical data, allowed the interpretation of depositional sub-environments and their evolution through time. We interpret the Holocene sedimentary evolution for the Turbio River valley as six time periods that reflect shifts in sediment source, energy regime, flow types, and sedimentary processes linked to fluctuations between wet and dry climatic conditions. The sedimentary sequence is interpreted as reflecting an initial high-energy period with continuous surface runoff followed by two periods of formation of extensive lakes, likely separated by periods of runoff intensification. The later part of the sequence reflects a more stable fluvial landscape that led to the excavation of the sedimentary fill. This sedimentary record provides valuable insights into past climate variations and their impact on the hydrodynamic conditions of the fluvial system in the region. Comparisons with other regional records support a broader understanding of climate change in the semi-arid Andes of Chile. • Rio Turbio sedimentary record is studied to reconstruct Holocene river dynamics. • Fluctuations in fluvial processes are related to alternating wet and dry periods. • A new model explains how the river evolved in response to Holocene climate variations. • Fluvial record provide valuable insights into past climates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some of the most disruptive effects of climate change are projected to be felt along the coastlines. The combined effects of future changes in water levels and wave climate along coastal areas constitute one of the most serious threats to their sustainable evolution, compromising critical infrastructures, resources, ecosystems, and communities. Understanding long-term changes in coastal areas remains challenging, however, due to their multivariate and multi-time-and-space-scale nature. In this study, we propose an innovative methodology for a complete vulnerability assessment of sandy low-lying coastal areas, based on dynamic, ensemble-based projections from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 5 (CMIP5). In the current Part I study, the effects of sea level rise (SLR) and nearshore wave climate changes on future shoreline evolution are assessed at five key-locations along the Portuguese coastline. Longshore sediment transport (LST) projections are computed, and sedimentary imbalances are quantified. Overall, robust shoreline retreat of up to 300 m is projected, especially along the Portuguese northern and central coastal areas, with continued erosion driven mainly by sediment imbalance and SLR. The projected decrease in future nearshore wave energy is responsible for a slight alleviation in erosion trends, up to 6.33%, whereas the increase of northerly incoming waves is expected to lead to northward beach rotations along western Mainland Portugal. The resulting shoreline evolution, responsible for the loss of up to 0.786 km2 of dry land by 2100 along the 14 km of analysed coastline, is projected to threaten several Portuguese urban areas, calling for the implementation of adequate coastal management and adaptation plans, to reduce the impacts of climate change on population, infrastructures, livelihood, and ecosystems. • An innovative methodology for a coastal vulnerability assessment is proposed. • Impact of SLR and wave climate changes on future shoreline evolution are assessed. • Robust shoreline retreat up to 300 m is projected along the Portuguese coastlines. • Shoreline evolution is responsible for loss of up to 0.786 km2 of dry land by 2100. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Decrease of suspended sediment transport in the Mediterranean over the last century. • Time series reconstruction using artificial intelligence. • Crucial role of climate change in the regulation of suspended sediment transport. • Secondary influences of the anthropic impact. The analysis of suspended sediment transport and of its variations over time is crucial for understanding environmental evolution and it is the key to future challenges caused by current global warming. The Mediterranean area is a hot spot for global changes, and the variation of precipitation amount and intensity will modify the environment of this region. In this work, we analyse the time series of suspended sediment transport of two rivers located in central Italy by using statistical and artificial intelligence techniques. Our study aims to re-analyze time series of suspended sediment transport, in order to demonstrate that climate change is responsible for the substantial decrease in the amount of sediment over the past century, in relation to the atmospheric teleconnections of the North Atlantic. Anthropic pressures like reforestation, land use change, and dam building have influenced the sediment transport capacity of rivers, causing a reduction of sediment concentration in water. These results are key factors to determine the future management of the Mediterranean areas, where the future scenarios predict a greater drop in yearly precipitation, and therefore a possible further decrease in the sediment transport capacity of the rivers, with major consequences for coastal and fluvial environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A strong signal of reduced winter conditions i.e. duration, snow accumulation and frost days. • Hydroclimatic regime shift alters the sediment flux seasonality in near future. • Thaw-seasons have important role controlling the annual sediment flux. Climate change alters high latitude hydrological cycle by diminishing the snow accumulation and spring flood magnitude, and by altering temperature and rainfall finally leading to hydroclimatic regime shift from snow-dominated to rain-dominated. These changes in temperature, precipitation patterns, and discharge strongly influence geomorphological processes in fluvial environments, leading to alterations in sediment transport, erosion, accumulation, and landscape changes. We conducted comprehensive analysis of hydroclimatic trends and shifts on boreal Oulanka River system, spanning over the past five decades. A strong signal of warming temperatures (+0.61 Celsius/decade), reduced winter conditions and warmer summers (+0.41 Celsius/decade) was detected. The spring flood magnitude diminished 7 %, but high discharge peaks (Q > annual p90m3/s) during other seasons increased 22 % together with 28 % increase of annual minimum discharge. Simultaneously, precipitation intensity increased during summer. The meander migration rate (mean 0.89 or 2.55 m/year) and bank erosion volume were interconnected to ground frost, high snow sum, high discharge, and high-water level during spring flood, but no significant long-term trends were observed. Our findings underscore that climate is the first-order control on fluvial geomorphology and emphasizes the complex interplay between various hydrological and climatic factors that shape the dynamics of river systems. Based on the results, we expect to see changes in the spatial–temporal distribution of high latitude rivers sediment flux in future. In addition, more attention should be addressed to the thaw seasons controlling the sediment transport, as majority of the observed shifts took place in these months. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water erosion, a notorious major threat to food security and ecosystem sustainability, is strongly conditioned by spatial and temporal scale effects. This paper systematically reviews the scale issues in runoff and sediment delivery (SIRSD) as a research field by integrating the traditional review approach and bibliometric analysis. This review summarises SIRSD's roots and the scale effect on runoff and sediment delivery. Then, we provide quantitative insights into the SIRSD domain's development history, thematic structure, geographic distribution, international cooperation, and methodologies. Findings show that: i) SIRSD arises from the gap between the non-linearity of runoff and sediment delivery across scales and our ability to measure it. Point-based and short-term measurements cannot capture the non-linearities from the spatio-temporal heterogeneities and cross-scale interactions of factors or processes. ii) Previous literature provides evidence that the spatial scaling of specific runoff (r), soil erosion (SE), sediment yield (SSY), or sediment delivery ratio (SDR) with drainage area (A) or slope length (L) exhibits contrasting patterns due to distinct mechanisms. Infiltration-excess and saturation-excess processes account for inverse and positive r - A relations, respectively. Interrill-erosion and rill-erosion cause inverse and positive SE-L relations. Hillslope-erosion and channel/bank-erosion explain inverse and positive SSY-A relations. Downstream increasing deposition and additional sediment inputs drive inverse and positive SDR-A relations. These scaling relationships can be nonlinear or complex due to spatial heterogeneities in land use, vegetation, topography, climate, lithology, and soil characteristics. Hence, applying an empirical scaling equation developed from the region with distinct environmental contexts is not recommended. Furthermore, the existing scaling patterns or equations may require updating given global climate and land use change. iii) SIRSD is a complex and multidisciplinary issue investigated by scientists from 93 countries since 1928. International research has substantially facilitated the understanding of SIRSD; still, more collaboration should focus on less-developed countries with high soil and water loss risks and urgent conservation needs, such as those in Africa and South America under cropland expansion. iv) Scale mismatch and scale break have discredited large-scale erosion and sediment assessments. Incorporating gully and bank erosion into modelling, extending the scale range of the L factor, and expanding the sediment scaling scope from watershed to slope may make a difference. Therefore, more research with nested design incorporating multiple scales is necessary for cross-scale analysis and scalable modelling. Addressing global climate change requires improving real-time urban flood forecasting and integrating downscaled climate models with hydrology, erosion, and sediment transport models. • A bibliometric review of the global SIRSD research for the first time. • SIRSD is rooted in the gap between natural nonlinearity and our measuring ability. • Scaling of specific runoff, erosion, sediment yield, and SDR has diverse patterns. • Scale mismatch and scale break discredit large-scale modelling and assessments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Late Cenozoic changes in the intensity of the East Asian Summer Monsoon (EASM) are reconstructed using both terrestrial and marine proxy records; however, proxies from terrestrial (e.g., loess, pollen, and pedogenic isotopes) and marine environments (e.g., foraminifer assemblages and geochemistry) commonly display large discrepancies both in the direction and timing of changes in the EASM. In part, these discrepancies reflect long-term changes in paleogeography that are independent of climate variations. We assess the influence of a rapidly uplifting orogen on EASM records by comparing temporally constrained gamma-ray, δ13C org , hematite/goethite, and magnetic susceptibility records from Late Miocene–Early Pleistocene strata of the Taiwan Western Foreland Basin to time-equivalent EASM proxy records in the South China Sea (SCS). Prior to the emergence of modern Taiwan (∼6.3–5.4 Ma), sediment in the SCS was largely derived from Eurasia and transported into the Pacific Ocean. Following its emergence and southwest migration of the collision zone ∼5.4 Ma, proto-Taiwan became a major sediment source to the SCS. The uplift and southwest migration of Taiwan and northwest migration of the Luzon volcanic arc resulted in the formation of southwest-flowing deep- (1500–2500 m water depth) and bottom-water (>2500 m water depth) currents and the SCS Branch of the Kuroshio Current. Together these currents transported sediment from Taiwan towards the SCS. Increased sediment input from Taiwan is recorded as a decline in hematite/goethite values in sediment records from the northern and central SCS. By ∼3.2 Ma, continued southwest migration and growth of the Taiwan orogen resulted in the formation of the Taiwan Warm Current, which remobilized some sediment from Taiwan towards the East China Sea. Despite strengthening of deep-water currents during the Late Pliocene–Early Pleistocene, relative sediment input from Taiwan to the wider SCS decreased. Consequently, relative contributions from Eurasia and Luzon increased. In the southern SCS, where the Mekong River has dominated sedimentation since the Late Miocene, proxy records show no influence from the Taiwan orogen and instead reflect environmental changes in Mainland Southeast Asia driven mainly by monsoon variability. Our results show that a rapidly uplifting orogen has the potential to significantly impact paleoclimate records >1000 km away from the collision zone. This highlights the influence of shifting sediment sources on paleoclimate proxy records, which must be considered in interpreting past climate change from the sedimentary record. • Taiwan orogenesis is linked to South China Sea climate proxies. • Rapid orogenesis can drive shifts in sediment source and ocean currents. • Tectonic activity is the dominant control on proxies prior to ∼3 Ma. • After ∼3 Ma, proxies reflect enhanced monsoon strength related to glaciation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Thar Desert is a major sediment depocenter located in southwestern Asia and bordering the Indus drainage system to its east. It is unclear where the sediment that built the desert is coming from, and when the desert experienced phases of construction. In particular, we seek to establish the role of the South Asian monsoon in the initial formation and subsequent expansion of the desert. Here we integrate bulk-petrography and heavy-mineral data with U-Pb ages of detrital zircon grains to understand how the Thar Desert relates to the major potential sediment sources in the Himalayan orogen and to the large rivers that adjoin it to the west and north. Bulk petrography and heavy-mineral data from eolian sand in Cholistan (NE Pakistan) show closer similarity with that of Himalayan tributaries than eolian sand in Sindh (S Pakistan), which contains heavy-mineral suites close to those of mainstream Indus sand largely supplied by erosion of the Karakorum and Kohistan ranges. Kohistan is a particularly rich source of heavy minerals and is thus over-represented in provenance budgets based on that proxy alone. U Pb ages of detrital-zircon fail to show a sharp difference between dune sands in Sindh and Cholistan but confirms a somewhat greater supply from the Himalaya in Cholistan and from the Karakorum, Kohistan, and Nanga Parbat in Sindh. Zircon ages are similar in Sindh desert sand and in the Indus Delta, and are most similar to deltaic sand dated as 7 ka or older in the deglacial period. In parallel, the age signature of Cholistan sand resembles more that of older river channels found along the northwestern edge of the desert (e.g., paleo-Ghaggar-Hakra) than that of modern Himalayan tributaries (e.g., Sutlej). Both Cholistan and Sindh sands suggest that sediment supply to the desert was greater during the early Holocene when the summer monsoon was stronger. The southwesterly summer monsoon was the most effective agent of eolian transport and recycling of Indus delta sediments entrained towards the central and northern parts of the Thar Desert. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• (234U/238U) were analyzed for the Changjiang estuary sediments. • Catchment erosion was revealed by sediment comminution age. • Climate changes play a leading role in catchment erosion. • Human activities changed the natural erosion processes since the late Holocene. Catchment erosion not only plays an important role on landscape evolution, but also determines the exposure of rock debris in the regolith profile, and therefore impacts the chemical weathering and associated CO 2 absorption and ultimately global climate. But climate also modulates erosion and complex interaction loops, especially at large scale can hamper a clear understanding of these processes. Here we mainly use Uranium-series Comminution Age (t com) of core sediments from Changjiang estuary to reconstruct the catchment erosion, and the relationship with climate changes and human activities during the last 14 kyrs. Since 14 ka, the sea level has been rising continuously until current highstand system tract in the East China Sea where the Changjiang estuary is located. The sediments in the Changjiang estuary mainly come from the upper reaches erosion zone during this period, but the sediment supply from the middle and lower reaches has gradually increased since the Late Holocene. The period can be divided into two modes. The first mode happens from the Bølling-Allerød period to the Mid-Holocene when the sea level rose rapidly, and the t com of sediment recorded the residence time in the upper reaches erosion zone, with a periodic pattern of t com in a good agreement with climate changes. During the cold and dry periods, the longer t com (average 460 kyrs) is consistent with less precipitation resulting in shallower erosion with transported material mainly coming from the soil with longer residence time. In contrast, during the warm and wet periods, the t com is shorter (average 290 kyrs), with the more abundant precipitations that contribute to deeper erosion in the upper catchment, and more fresh material transported to the estuary through stronger hydrodynamic forces. The second mode is more chaotic and corresponds to 0 to 4 ka, when climate was warm and humid and stable sea level, but t com fluctuated from 200 kyrs to 650 kyrs. The increasing river flooding caused by abundant precipitation leads to lateral migration of the river channel in the middle and lower reaches, and the sediments deposited in the floodplain were eroded and mobilized again. In addition, the rapid development of human activities since 2 ka has accelerated deforestation and agricultural cultivation, leading to localized erosion of the floodplain. These remobilized sediments were transported to the estuary and deposited, resulting in a larger t com value. This study overall indicates that, in the millennial scale, the t com of fine detrital fraction shows a sensitive and quick response to catchment erosion, and provides new insights into quantifying the time scale of sediment source to sink processes and inferring the paleoenvironment accurately climate changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Continued erosion is expected to occur in the sandy shores. • Equilibrium relationship between sediment supply and hydrodynamic forces has been severely disrupted. • Global climate change-induced sea level rise has a small effect on erosion in the short term. • Human activities are the critical effect on the erosion. • Reduced seaward sediment transport by coastal surface runoffs is a new factor. Most sandy shores (SSs) are currently experiencing erosion to various degrees due to the combined impact of increasing climate change and human activities. In order to reveal the evolution of the SSs in the Shandong Peninsula (SP), shoreline and elevation changing data are obtained from 29 SSs and results show that most (27 of 29) of the SSs exhibited erosion. The length of the SSs has decreased by 241.4 km from 2010 to 2020, and the average shoreline recession rate was found to be 1.0 m/a and the downward erosion rate was in the range of 0.05 to 0.10 m/a. Climate change-induced sea level rise has a smaller effect on the erosion in the short term and the construction of massive coastal engineering structures has become a major cause of local coastal erosion. The coastal erosion rate caused by river damming and sand mining in the early years has abated and reduced seaward sediment transport induced by the expansion of the built-up area has become a new factor of coastal erosion. In the past decade, the 672 km2 net increase in land area mainly originated from human activities, has occupied the original space for hydrodynamic energy dissipation, which has severely disrupted the balance between sediment supply and the hydrodynamic environment and the system then rebalance itself by eroding unprotected SSs. Therefore, with the increase in hydrodynamic forces caused by climate change and the scarcity of sediment supply caused by human activities, continued erosion is expected to occur in the SSs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]