Abstract:

Sandy coast is one type of coastal wetland ecosystems, which has important ecological service functions and is also susceptible to human activities and global changes. In September and December 2022, ten survey profiles were set up on the sandy coast in the Shenhu Bay, Fujian Province to conduct observations of the terrain and geomorphic characteristics as well as measurements of sediment granularity. A comprehensive evaluation of the natural resource endowment and disaster bearing capacity of the sandy coast in the Shenhu Bay was conducted based on the related national standards which provide corresponding indexes and grading criteria. The width of intertidal zone of Shenhu Bay beach is 150-800 m in autumn and 150-950 m in winter. The overall trend is narrow in the middle and wide on both sides. The slope of intertidal zone is generally slow. Elevation, dry beach width and intertidal zone width increase in winter, compared with those of autumn. For two of the sediment grain size characteristics survey sections, the composition of the beach shoulder area is sand, the composition of the sediments in the high tide area is sand and gravel, and the main components in the middle tide and low tide areas are sand and silt, but the components vary across the seasons. The overall natural resource endowment of the sandy coast in the Shenhu Bay is good, but due to factors such as seaward width and relative tidal range, the natural disaster bearing capacity is moderate. As the first-hand basic data of Shenhu Bay, the research results provide technological support for improving its natural resource endowment, natural disaster bearing capacity, and protection and restoration of the sandy coast.

Key words: sandy coast, sediment granularity, resource endowments, disaster bearing capacity, Shenhu Bay, Fujian