MULTICRITERIA ANALYSIS OF VULNERABILITY TO COASTAL EROSION IN THE ATLANTIC COAST OF PARAENSE, EASTERN AMAZON

Abstract

Global coastal erosion constitutes one of the most alarming problems in the spatial scenario of societies residing in these zones. Rapid climate change and rising sea levels can accelerate coastal erosion. Consequently, increased coastal erosion can severely damage coastal environments, hinder commercial activities, and disrupt tourism sectors. This work aims to analyze vulnerability to coastal erosion at the beaches of Bora, Crispim, and Marudá, in the northern portion of the Marapanim municipality, northeast of Pará State (Brazil). Thus, the goal is to develop physical vulnerability indices from the impacts of coastal erosion using a multi-criteria decision-making approach based on AHP and to spatialize the results under the scope of coastal vulnerability. In total, seven physical criteria were selected: shoreline change, geomorphology, soil types, proximity to the coast, coastal vegetation, elevation, and slope. The compiled criteria were acquired based on the availability of data and relevance to coastal vulnerability. The areas of high and very high physical vulnerability in the study area cover approximately 5.99 and 0.87 km², respectively, comprising 71% of the total study area. In turn, the results obtained are of utmost importance for supporting mitigation measures against the impacts of coastal erosion by management bodies.