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Below is a false color image of Myrtle Beach, where the colors on the image represent the data values — in this case, elevation. The term "false color" simply means that the image is not a photograph, and that you should use the colorbar on the image to interpret what the colors mean. The LIDAR sensor will map any structure on or around the beach. In this image of Myrtle Beach a fishing pier, a common structure on the South Carolina coast, was mapped. The thin blue line near the center of the image is a small inlet. You can make a similar image using the BeachMapper software application provided on the second volume of this CD-ROM set. For more information about the BeachMapper application, click here.
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Portable Document Format (PDF) maps have been created to show LIDAR data for South Carolina's beaches and islands. PDF maps will allow you to zoom in on the data and print the maps at better resolution. However, because of the intense density of the data, the PDF files will not draw properly from your browser. If you have Adobe Acrobat Reader® software installed on your computer, you can view the maps by navigating to the pdf/islands directory on this CD-ROM and double click on a file. A directory of maps is available in the readme.txt file. Adobe Acrobat Reader software has been provided on this CD-ROM.
To learn more about PDF documents and installing the software need to view them, click here.
The northernmost segment of the South Carolina coast consists of an arcuate strand or beach referred to as the Grand Strand. With the exception of Waites Island, the Grand Strand is nearly 50 miles of continuous beach broken by only a few inlets. This region is bounded to the north by Cape Fear, North Carolina and to the south by Cape Romaine, South Carolina. The crescent shaped shoreline is one of three major arcuate strands found along the Atlantic coast. The Grand Strand is not an island; rather, the beach is an extension of the mainland. The tidal range is less than 6 feet, so this section is classified as a microtidal coast. Microtidal shoreline characteristics are primarily determined by wind-driven waves. Wave direction follows a seasonal pattern; thus, the resulting longshore current drives sediment downcoast during the winter and upcoast during the summer. Alternating current direction gives rise to the arc shape of the shoreline.
This 8-mile section lies within the Myrtle Beach city limits and has 23 monitoring stations located in this stretch of beach. Stations 5300 to 5430 span an area of heavy commercial development. Shore armoring is common with many seawalls and bulkheads in this zone. The City of Myrtle Beach completed a $4.5 million, 2-phase nourishment project in 1987. The project was designed for typical weather and erosion conditions during a one-to-ten year period. The project widened the beach by 45 - 55 feet at and is attributed with damage reduction of upland development from coastal storms during the winter of 1986-87. The section of beach from station 5300 to 5405 was renourished again between March and September of 1997. In the renourished area, the dry-sand beach width increased by 100 - 120 feet from spring to fall 1997.
The area between stations 5435 and 5465 is primarily residential, although there are a few commercial sites. Characteristics of the shoreline are mixed with few bulkheads or seawalls. In many areas there is a well-defined primary dune, while in others a residential lawn slopes down to and intersects with the berm. Some parts of this span were renourished during the 1997 project. The northern section of Myrtle Beach is primarily commercial development, although there are several residential structures interspersed. A small but well-defined primary dune exists along most of the beach.
Beach profile surveys are conducted in the spring and fall at approximately 400 monitoring stations throughout the State of South Carolina. Various agencies participate in the beach profile collection, including The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC) Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (OCRM), Coastal Carolina University, and the College of Charleston. The results of the surveys provide a snapshot of the beach face. Over time, these surveys can be compiled to determine if and how the profile of the beach is changing. Below is a map of the stations and a sample of the profiles that can be extracted from the data. The beach profile data compiled by OCRM is provided on the second volume of this CD-ROM set.
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| *South Carolina Department of Health
and Environmental Control Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management |
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For more information about South Carolina beach profiles see: South
Carolina's Annual State of the Beaches Report, April 1998,
SCDHEC OCRM, 1362 McMillian Ave. Suite 400, Charleston, SC 29405.
| Beach | Myrtle Beach |
| Construction Dates | Stage 1: January 1986 - April 1986 Stage 2: Winter 1987 |
| Completion Date | 5/1987 |
| Volume of Sand (cy) | 853,350 cy |
| Unit Area Volume(cy/ft) | 19 cy/ft avg. |
| Source of Sediment | Inland sand hauled by truck from International Paper property along Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (59,539 truckloads) |
| Grain Size Characteristics Native Sediment/Fill | Native:0.27 mm; Borrow=0.27 mm; R A=1.1 |
| Previous Nourishments | 1958 (3 1/2 years post Hazel) U.S. Army Corps of Engineers determined nourishment not necessary; Sand scraping following 1986-1987 New Year's Day Storm |
| Length of project (Coverage) | 45,000 ft (8.6 miles) |
| % Sacrificial Fill | 40% to beyond 15 ft depth |
| Total Cost | $4.7 M |
| Cost of Components | Not Applicable |
| Cost per Unit ($/cy) | $5.50/cy |
| Funding | Based on 10-year bond paid annually by accommodations tax revenue |
| Significant Storms | Hurricane Hugo September 21, 1989 |
| Storm Results | Average loss of 10.7 cy/ft (Kana) Average loss 7.7 cy/ft (Berkemeier); ~ 2.5 cy/ft less than pre-nourishment conditions |
| Action Taken | Beach scraping following New Year's Day Storm/Emergency nourishment |
| Monitoring | Coastal Science and Engineering, Inc. |
| Engineer and Contractor | Coastal Science and Engineering, Inc./ M. C. Anderson, Inc. Garden City, GA |
| Projected/Actual Lifespan | 10 years/10 years (including emergency renourishment following Hugo) |
| Historic Erosion Rates | 1.0 - 2.75 cy/ft/yr mid 1950s - mid 1980s -0.4 - -0.5 ft/yr |
| Beach Stabilization Structures | Not Applicable |
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