Truncated dunes as evidence of the 2004 tsunami in North Sumatra and environmental recovery post‐tsunami |
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| Authors: | Claire Kain Christopher Gomez Patrick Wassmer Franck Lavigne Deirdre Hart |
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| Institution: | 1. Department of Geography, University of Canterbury, , Christchurch, New Zealand;2. School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, , Sydney, Australia;3. Faculté de Géographie et d'Aménagement, Université de Strasbourg, , Strasbourg, France;4. Laboratoire de Géographie Physique, Université Paris 1 Panthéon‐Sorbonne, , France |
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| Abstract: | The 2004 tsunami transformed the coast of Indonesia. This research investigates a sand dune area in Lampuuk, Sumatra, that was scoured by tsunami flow. We assessed geomorphology one‐year post‐event and examine the timescale of vegetation recovery. Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) evidence shows an eroded succession of thin dipping units, overlain by aeolian layers 0 to 50 cm thick. Incipient dunes were absent, indicating limited dune rebuilding at one‐year post‐tsunami, possibly resulting from channelised airflow and the absence of vegetation. Recolonisation by vegetation was initially limited but progressed rapidly between 2005 and 2011, highlighting the temporal non‐linearity of recovery processes. |
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| Keywords: | coastal erosion geomorphic recovery Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) Sumatra Indonesia tsunami |
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