Know your beach with Coastal Explorer
Science Centres: Coasts
Know your beach with Coastal Explorer
Beaches are identified using various different criteria (top screen); detailed fact sheets are also available for many beaches (below).
Coastal Explorer is a new web tool, developed by NIWA, which provides a whole host of free information about New Zealand’s shoreline and beaches. The tool aims to help people understand beaches, manage coastal hazards, and safeguard lives and property.
Users can zoom in on GIS-based maps, and find details of beach and coastal features such as tides, waves, foreshore sediment type, coastal bathymetry, and hinterland topography. More detailed fact sheets about specific beaches are also gradually being added to the Explorer’s database; these include 3-D models showing the beach type and the characteristics of waves and rips that occur there, details of access andbeach facilities, and photos of the beach. A beach safety rating has been assigned for each beach with the assistance of Surf Life Saving New Zealand.
Coastal Explorer will be of value to many people, from resource managers and scientists to surf life guards, local communities, and people just heading to the beach for a bit of sea, surf, and sand.
Funding for development of Coastal Explorer has come from the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology.