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A proposed coastal zone classification for use in British Columbia

University of British Columbia

The coastal zone is one of British Columbia's most outstanding yet little studied attributes. The importance of recreation in British Columbia's coastal zone has been increasing dramatically in recent years while other land and water uses are also concentrated in this zone. As a result, resource use conflicts are becoming more frequent and there is an expressed need for suitability and capability information for the coastal zone. The purpose of this thesis is to develop a coastal zone classification system for suitability and capability information regarding recreational camping, picnicking and cottaging. The extensive and often inaccessible nature of the coastal zone has led to the need for the use of remote sensing as a basis for developing a coastal classification system. Three coastal zone classification systems previously used in B.C. were examined under field conditions in order to derive the advantages and limitations to each. Remote sensing data were examined to determine the information to be expected. Three types and two scales of vertical aerial photographs were examined: black and white at a scale of 1:15,840 and color and color infrared at a scale of 1:3,600. It was found that the use of any one film and scale type exclusively would increase the amount of field work necessary to provide the information required in the classification system. As a result of this study a new classification system for suitability and capability information regarding camping, picnicking and cottaging in the coastal zone was proposed. The system depends primarily on remote sensor data. Shore processes form the basis of the classification system. Many conflicts in land and water use result from failure to understand that changes to any part of the coastal zone may affect the rest of the zone. The classification system combines the descriptive and symbol format of data presentation to combine the static and more dynamic components of the coastal zone in one system.

Text

2010-03-18

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http://hdl.handle.net/2429/22101

Soil Science

University of British Columbia

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