Identification of coastal natural disasters using official databases to provide support for the coastal management: the case of Santa Catarina, Brazil

• Published in: Natural hazards (Dordrecht) 2024-09, Vol.120 (12), p.11465-11482
• Main Authors: Leal, Karine Bastos, Robaina, Luís Eduardo de Souza, Körting, Thales Sehn, Nicolodi, João Luiz, da Costa, Júlia Dasso, Souza, Vitória Gonçalves
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 21st century; Civil defense; Civil Engineering; Climate change; Coastal erosion; Coastal management; Coastal zone; Coastal zone management; Coastal zones; Coasts; Disasters; Earth and Environmental Science; Earth Sciences; Emergency preparedness; Environmental Management; Floods; Geophysics/Geodesy; Geotechnical Engineering & Applied Earth Sciences; Hydrogeology; Information systems; Mean sea level; Municipalities; Natural disasters; Natural Hazards; Original Paper; Rain; Sea level; Sea level rise; Soil erosion; Storms; Tidal waves
• ISSN: 0921-030X; 1573-0840
• DOI: 10.1007/s11069-023-06150-3

The increase in natural disaster frequency, intensified by climate change, poses one of the greatest threats to coastal systems and low-lying areas worldwide. It is estimated that the Global Mean Sea Level (GMSL) could rise by approximately 2 m in the twenty-first century, alongside intensifying cyclonic events. Consequently, in Brazil, coastal natural disasters are likely to become more frequent and intense, especially in the southern region. Thus, this study aims to identify, map and discuss coastal natural disasters in municipalities exposed to the open ocean belonging to the coastal zone of Santa Catarina (SC), Brazil, between 1998 and 2020. A review and dating of coastal natural disasters were conducted using four official databases: The Civil Defense of Santa Catarina website, Integrated Disaster Information System (S2ID), Santa Catarina Atlas of Natural Disasters, and the Brazilian Atlas of Natural Disasters. The data were organized into spreadsheets and mapped using QGIS 3.16.0 software. The results and main conclusions indicate: (1) More coastal disasters occurred in the north, central-north, and central sectors of SC between 1998 and 2020; (2) the period between 2010 and 2020 was more impactful; (3) the municipalities with the most records of coastal disasters were Balneário Barra do Sul, Itapoá and Florianópolis (considering only Ilha de Santa Catarina), respectively; (4) the three fastest-growing sectors are the north, central-north, and central; and (5) the seasons of autumn, spring, and winter, respectively, are more impacting for the study area.