MARLIT

Due to the very high density of population in the coastal belt, numbers of urbanized coastal areas are today exposed to risks induced by extreme marine events. This is especially the case for the French-Spanish Basque and Catalan coasts, which are regularly hit by intense storms. Moreover, this risk exposure tends to increase due to the global warming, which results in both an increase in mean water level and an intensification of extreme meteorological events. As a consequence, coastal risks management is today a major challenge for the Basque and Catalan coasts, raising large safety and economic issues.

Key results

During the study carried out mostly on the coast of the Basque Autonomous Community as well as on the Basque-French and Catalan coast, a large database has been developed that collects detailed local information on the impact of storms on the coastline.

Innovative technological tools have been designed, such as solutions based on videometry, which make it possible to monitor the different parameters and impacts associated with waves during the course of a storm, or a sensor that measures the impact of waves on coastal structures. Work has also been carried out on the development of computer models capable of faithfully reproducing wave-to-wave inundation processes.

A catalogue of measures has been drawn up with an assessment of the feasibility of their application and a simulation of the economic cost to public administrations.

Main objective

To improve knowledge and tools for understanding the impacts of current and future storms on the coast in order to support coastal risk management by public administrations.

Expected results

• The production a large database gathering detailed local information about storm impacts, using INNOVATIVE monitoring and modelling technologies.
• A new capitalization on historical storm events to support protection, monitoring and prediction actions led by public administrations.
• An unprecedented evaluation of the future evolution of coastal risks at the local scale.
• The identification and assessment of INNOVATIVE mitigation countermeasures to reduce the onshore impact of ocean storms.

Main Beneficiaries of MARLIT will be public administrations in charge of coastal management, and on a broader level the general public. The cross-border approach of MARLIT will bring a crucial added-value to the project by allowing to gather territories faced to similar issues and located in the same coastal environment, as well as expert teams with complementary expertise.