CORVALLIS
The increasingly intense winter storms along the Oregon Coast
are jacking up the severity of winter erosion. Oregon State University researchers
analyzed 25 years of data and found that wave heights have
grown from an average of about 3 meters to an average of 4
meters. At the same time, wave heights during major storms have
grown from around 11 meters to around 15 meters. The scientists
say that the heavy early winter storms have already
caused significant erosion along the Oregon Coast and that home
and business owners along the coast should be on alert.
“Having this much erosion by November is kind of
scary,” says Paul Komar, professor emeritus in the
college of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences at OSU.
