1	Projects and Functions of the Mississippi Office of Geology Coastal Division Divisional and Program Review
2	Coastal/Marine Issues Citizens highly dependent on coastal environment Vital for transportation, commerce and recreation Highly diverse and resource-rich environment Large population centers However, it is a fragile ecosystem Environmental changes offset economic - lifestyle balance Threatens quality of life by reducing or degrading recreational space Risks to productive habitats that support important industries Affects livelihood and can cause wide scale property damage
3	Geologic Importance Natural disasters Hurricanes or storms displace residents and damage infrastructure Wetland loss Increased flooding, loss of critical habitats Sea-level rise Habitat changes, flooding risks, shrinking land area Degraded coastal habitats Loss of productive habitats, decline in fisheries Coastal erosion infrastructure damage, loss of recreational space, higher cost of protection
4	Coastal Division Overview Program started in earnest with grant from USGS Initial cooperation with Universities and Government organizations in MS and LA to outline goals Early objectives included: Historical geography of MS coast, Shoreline geomorphology, Coastal mapping, Sand resource mapping, and Wetland inventory Priority is placed on applied regional research and local site-specific problems/conflicts Other duties include environmental studies for the parent organization, MDEQ, in lakes and rivers
5	Applied Coastal Research and the DEQ Tie together aspects of past and present coastal research to achieve Best practice principals Resource conservation Permitting consistency Products for DEQ, citizen organizations, DMR, Secretary of State
6	Applied Coastal Research Projects Coastal monitoring - yearly inventory of coastal change Sand resources - map and quantify local sources (sinks) of sand reserves Coastal preservation - systematic study of local coastal processes to determine environmentally sound alternatives Offshore/Nearshore geology - local and regional framework geological studies Wetland/Estuary geochronology - pollution and sedimentation history “Wet” support for MDEQ and Holocene coastal plain geology for Mississippi Office of Geology Coastal land-use and environmental sensitivity Public GIS assistance
7	Coastal Monitoring Yearly surveys using GPS and cross-shore profiles to document changes to the Mississippi Shoreline including wetlands, renourished and natural beaches, and islands Data used in storm erosion and sediment loss analysis and long term erosion estimates Biennial reports on renourished beaches for coastal governments Reports on wetland loss for DMR Island evolution studies for National Park Service
8	Sand Resources Offshore investigations of sand resources for use in beach renourishment Map and delineate new sources of sand Monitor the fate of previously renourished sediments Outline the geologic framework that is responsible for the occurrence of the sand resources
9	Coastal Preservation Studies unique to Mississippi’s coastal environment and development Small projects aimed at understanding localized problems or processes Immediate benefits to local groups/organizations Long-term benefit to DEQ on possible problems with similar, future development (expanding database)
10	Offshore/Nearshore Geology Map the thickness and extents of Quaternary sediments Use in outlining potential hard (non-fuel) mineral resources Explore relationship between erosion and surrounding/underlying units Document evolution of Mississippi’s coastline, islands and offshore morphology Tidelands delineation based on coastal geology
11	Estuary Geochronology Use of marsh cores to document the anthropogenic influence on the ecosystem Outline background ‘natural’ sediment chemistries Determine yearly sediment rates and histories High resolution marsh surface elevation changes
12	Wet Support - Lakes Erosion and sedimentation studies on lakes for OPC Chronological sedimentation events Total sediment volumes Sediment pathways and probable land-use causes Recommendations for remediation and prevention
13	Coastal Land-use and Environmental Sensitivity Land-use below the 15 ft contour Wetland classifications, total wetland area and loss. Environmental sensitivity to chemical spills products used by DMR, DEQ-Emergency Response, EPA, NOAA, Coastguard , MEMA and County governments
14	Public GIS Assistance Fill data requests and point/direct to sources Answer questions about maps, digital data, jobs, GIS software and GIS training Share data with other agencies to promote easy access Maintain 3 GPS basestations, covering entire state and coastal waters
15	MS-AL-FL Consortium Marine Mineral Resources habitat mapping Wetlands and Estuaries sediment quality erosion Fresh water Resources coastal groundwater and surface water contamination and hydrology