Comprehensive Mapping of Michigan's Coastal Sand Dunes

Session: 26. - Valuing Great Lakes Coastal Sand Dunes: New Science and Approaches

Alan Arbogast, Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences, Michigan State University, [email protected]
Clayton Queen, Michigan State University, [email protected]
Brad Garmon, Michigan Environmental Council, [email protected]

Abstract

Michigan has long recognized the value of its coastal sand dunes. This recognition is reflected by the numerous regulations designed to preserve the economic and aesthetic value of these landforms.  The first regulations were associated with the Sand Dune Protection and Management Act in 1976, which provoked mapping of large, barrier-dune complexes.  Amendments to the Act in 1989 expanded areas of barrier dunes to include “critical dunes”, which were mapped based on criteria such as height, aerial extent, and associated plant communities. Due to the stringent criteria used to define dunes in some maps and the local extent of others, previous mapping attempts excluded large areas of wind-blown sand. This project seeks to fill the gap left by earlier mapping efforts to create the first comprehensive map of Michigan’s coastal sand dunes. Using the highest spatial resolution digital elevation models (DEMs) currently available along any coastal reach, mapping was done by visual assessment of dune forms. Decisions were also informed by ancillary data such as aerial photography, NRCS SSURGO soils data, and field-based investigations at representative sites.  The completed map includes ~ 93,000 hectares of coastal dunes, resulting in three times as much dune area compared to previous maps.

1. Keyword
sediments

2. Keyword
comparison studies

4. Additional Keyword
sand dunes

5. Additional Keyword
mapping