The paper deals with a combination of the Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS) and remote sensing, studying historical mangrove shoreline changes and mangrove zoning in the Giao Thuy coastal area of the Nam Dinh province, Vietnam. | Vietnam Journal of Earth Sciences, 39(1), 87-96, DOI: Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology Vietnam Journal of Earth Sciences (VAST) A Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS) applied on mangrove shoreline changes along the Giao Thuy Coastal area (Nam Dinh, Vietnam) during 2005-2014 Nguyen An Thinh1*, Luc Hens2 1 Hanoi University of Natural Resources and Environment (HUNRE), Vietnam 2 Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO), Belgium Received 10 November 2016. Accepted 12 February 2017 ABSTRACT The paper deals with a combination of the Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS) and remote sensing, studying historical mangrove shoreline changes and mangrove zoning in the Giao Thuy coastal area of the Nam Dinh province, Vietnam. The results show an over-all mangrove area increase of 2,487 hectares during the years 2005-2014. This dynamics results from both degradation and increase of the mangroves. The calculated degradation rate is m yr-1, and the growth rate is m yr-1 on average. 4 different mangrove zones were delineated based on the End Point Rate (EPR) values of DSAS transects. The differential evolution of the mangroves in these zones is driven by socio-economic and environmental factors. The results contribute to practices of mangrove planning and management in a coastal area. Furthermore, historical mangrove shoreline change provides indicators to monitor coastal environmental changes for global warming, climate change, storm effects, sea level change, pollution, and sedimentation rates. Keywords: Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS), mangrove shoreline changes, mangrove zoning, transect, Giao Thuy coast, Vietnam. ©2017 Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology 1. Introduction1 Mangroves provide a variety of beneficial ecosystem services such as protecting shorelines, accelerating sediment accretions, and buffering shorelines from erosion by storms and waves .
