Modern-day tectonic subsidence in coastal Louisiana

Dokka, Roy K.

doi:10.1130/g22264.1

Cited by 125 publications

(136 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…In the Houston-Galveston area and the Santa Clara Valley, resource managers have successfully decreased land subsidence by moving groundwater pumping away from the coast, reducing groundwater withdrawal rates, and increasing aquifer recharge [29]. Similar findings have been reported for the San Joaquin Valley, California [30], coastal Louisiana [31], the Yellow River delta, China [32], and the central Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta, Bangladesh [33].…”

Section: Links Between Groundwater Withdrawals and Land Subsidencesupporting

confidence: 71%

Water Intrusion in the Chesapeake Bay Region: Is It Caused by Climate-Induced Sea Level Rise?

Bezdek¹

2017

GEP

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Sea level rise due to climate change is a contentious issue with profound geographic and economic implications. One region in the USA identified as being particularly susceptible to seal level rise is the Chesapeake Bay region, and it has been estimated that by the end of the century Norfolk, Virginia could experience sea level rise of 0.75 meters to more than 2.1 meters. Water intrusion is a serious problem in much of the Chesapeake Bay region. The question addressed here is whether this water intrusion is the result of climate-induced seal level rise or is being caused by other factors. Our findings indicate that the water intrusion problems in the region are due not to "sea level rise", but primarily to land subsidence due to groundwater depletion and, to a lesser extent, subsidence from glacial isostatic adjustment. We conclude that water intrusion will thus continue even if sea levels decline. These findings are critical because the water intrusion problems in the Chesapeake Bay-and elsewhere-cannot be successfully solved unless their causes are correctly identified and appropriate remedies are devised. For the Chesapeake Bay region, the required remedy is the reversal of groundwater withdrawal rates, which has been used successfully elsewhere in the USA and other nations to solve water intrusion problems.

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Section: Links Between Groundwater Withdrawals and Land Subsidencesupporting

confidence: 71%

Water Intrusion in the Chesapeake Bay Region: Is It Caused by Climate-Induced Sea Level Rise?

Bezdek¹

2017

GEP

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“…Another contributing factor involves a reduction in tectonic activity and subsidence due to active faulting (Dokka, 2006;Kolker and others, 2011). The extent to which submergence due to natural versus anthropologically influenced subsidence is poorly understood.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Land area change in coastal Louisiana (1932 to 2016)

Couvillion¹,

Beck²,

Schoolmaster³

et al. 2017

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“…Meanwhile, the wet and dry process caused by precipitation and pumping activities extracts water from the ground, making soil particles collapse onto each other and inducing more subsidence. Furthermore, tapping into subsurface aquifers for industrial purposes could activate fault slip and shallow surface deformations, particularly in New Orleans East [45].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating Land Subsidence Rates and Their Implications for Land Loss in the Lower Mississippi River Basin

Zou

Kent

Lam

et al. 2015

Water

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High subsidence rates, along with eustatic sea-level change, sediment accumulation and shoreline erosion have led to widespread land loss and the deterioration of ecosystem health around the Lower Mississippi River Basin (LMRB). A proper evaluation of the spatial pattern of subsidence rates in the LMRB is the key to understanding the mechanisms of the submergence, estimating its potential impacts on land loss and the long-term sustainability of the region. Based on the subsidence rate data derived from benchmark surveys from 1922 to 1995, this paper constructed a subsidence rate surface for the region through the empirical Bayesian kriging (EBK) interpolation method. The results show that the subsidence rates in the region ranged from 1.7 to 29 mm/year, with an average rate of 9.4 mm/year. Subsidence rates increased from north to south as the outcome of both regional geophysical conditions and anthropogenic activities. Four areas of high subsidence rates were found, and they are located in Orleans, Jefferson, Terrebonne and Plaquemines parishes. A projection of future landscape loss using the interpolated subsidence rates reveals that areas below zero elevation in the LMRB will increase from 3.86% in 2004 to 19.79% in 2030 and 30.88% in 2050. This translates to a growing increase of areas that are vulnerable to land loss from 44.3 km 2 /year to 240.7 km 2 /year from 2011 to 2050. Under the same scenario, Lafourche, Plaquemines and Terrebonne parishes will experience serious loss of wetlands, whereas Orleans and Jefferson parishes will lose significant developed land, and Lafourche parish will endure severe loss of agriculture land.

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Modern-day tectonic subsidence in coastal Louisiana

Cited by 125 publications

References 11 publications

Water Intrusion in the Chesapeake Bay Region: Is It Caused by Climate-Induced Sea Level Rise?

Water Intrusion in the Chesapeake Bay Region: Is It Caused by Climate-Induced Sea Level Rise?

Land area change in coastal Louisiana (1932 to 2016)

Evaluating Land Subsidence Rates and Their Implications for Land Loss in the Lower Mississippi River Basin

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