Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Wave Runup topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Steep Harpswell shorelines drive high wave run‑up estimates, consultants say
Summary
Consultants highlighted that steep rock shorelines can produce large wave run-up, showing transect-level examples and explaining why run-up—not just static inundation—is a primary hazard in Harpswell.
Hayward told the meeting Harpswell's steep shorelines amplify wave run‑up and that the study focused on nearshore transects to capture that effect. He described creating roughly 2,500 transects along the shoreline (clicked manually every ~50 feet) and running one‑dimensional calculations at fine elevation increments to estimate wave run‑up at each transect.
Using one example on Bailey Island, Hayward said the model calculated "a run up height of 15 meters. So that's, like, 45 feet." He explained FEMA mapping practice limits how far extreme run‑up contours are extended inland, distinguishing run‑up splash from full inundation; the maps therefore show both static flood depth and separate run‑up hazard layers.
