Details

In 2010 the Delta Program Wadden Area started to look into the effects of climate change on the Wadden area. The following main questions, relevant from a management perspective, were identified: 1. How will the sediment-sharing inlet systems of the Wadden area change under different climate scenarios, in combination with existing human interference? What are the implications of this for flood safety, natural values, and human use, such as shipping and mining?
2. How can we monitor the hydrodynamic and morphodynamic developments and the associated flood safety risks? 3. How can we adapt to the effects of climate change? This report provides a research framework showing the way towards developing research programs which successfully may address these questions. The report presents a comprehensive overview of the current scientific insights. It is concluded that currently knowledge of especially the long-term morphological functioning of the sediment-sharing inlet systems is insufficient to answer the above questions. The relevant knowledge gaps have been identified. If these are solved long-term prediction of morphological development of the sediment-sharing inlet systems becomes feasible. The goal should be to develop an operational process-based morpho-dynamic model for inlet systems including ebb-tidal deltas, barrier islands and backbarrier basins, similar to the operational hydrodynamic model for the Dutch Wadden.