Beach Erosion Inventory of Charleston County, South Carolina: A Preliminary Report

Rates of shoreline change measured from vertical aerial photographs between the years 1939 and 1973 allow classification of the Charleston County, South Carolina, coastline into four categories: Areas of long term erosion: areas which have undergone relatively continuous erosion over the study interval. Areas of long term accretion: areas which have undergone relatively continuous deposition over the study interval. Unstable areas: areas with fluctuations in position of the shoreline greater than 50 ft over the study interval. Stable areas: areas with fluctuations in position of the shoreline of less than 50 ft over the study interval. Beach erosion and deposition trends are closely tied to the occurrence and morphological variations of tidal inlets. Shoreline sediment type and modifications made by man also strongly affect erosion and deposition trends. Limits for set back lines and areas suitable and unsuitable for development can be defined directly from the erosion-deposition graphs presented.