Coastal storms in France trigger major morphological changes and infrastructure damage.
The study looked at how storms affect the coastline in the Gulf of Lions, France. Researchers developed a method to determine which storm characteristics cause different types of coastal changes. They found that storms with wave heights over 2.7 meters can lead to significant beach erosion and bar migration. When waves reach 5 meters, there can be breaches in coastal barriers and severe dune erosion. The study shows that wave height, not storm surge or total energy, is the main factor in predicting coastal impacts during storms.
