Abstract

MACEDO, Renê Jota Arruda de; MANSO, Valdir do Amaral Vaz; PEREIRA, Natan Silva  and  FRANCA, Lucy Gomes de. Sediment Transport and Short Term Coastline Variation at Maracaípe Beach (PE), Brazil. RGCI [online]. 2012, vol.12, n.3, pp.343-355. ISSN 1646-8872.

The south coast of Pernambuco has been experiencing an urban expansion process in recent years that it is being accelerated by the economic development of the region. Some stretches are naturally vulnerable to erosion while others are under erosion process due to irregular occupation of the coastal zone. Annually, problems related to erosion processes are reported at Maracaípe beach. The aim of this work is to characterize the sediment transport through sedimentological, morphological and short term shoreline variation analysis of the Maracaípe beach, in order to clarify the sedimentological dynamics of this region. It was carried out topographic surveys of the beach from December of 2009 to December of 2010, sediments sampling during summer and winter and shoreline variation analysis using orbital images. The beach widths and volumes extracted from the beach profiles showed a trend transport from south to northward, with some inversions of the direction in some periods along the year. The sectors 1 and 4 are constituted by fine sands and the sectors 2 and 3 by medium sands, moderately to well sorted. The coastline study had presented progradation in the first historical series, then a retreat in the second one and finally progradation in the last one, except for the sector 4 that amounted a constant retreat in whole historical series. The shoreline variations and the beach widths indicates a sediment coastal cell circulation pattern at the central stretches of Maracaípe beach. So it is necessary a new study in a major scale to comprises a more detailed datanet. The erosion processes in the region are associated to estuarine dynamic of the Maracaípe river and anthropic factors such as irregular backshore occupation. A major time scale monitoring is recommended so that generates subsides to coastal management of the region in establishing delimitations in the use and occupation of the coast.

Keywords : Maracaípe; Beach profile; Shoreline variation; Sediment transport.

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