Coastal Hazard Vulnerability Assessment Based on Geomorphic, Oceanographic and Demographic Parameters: The Case of the Peloponnese (Southern Greece)

Abstract

Today low-lying coastal areas around the world are threatened by climate change-related hazards. The identification of highly vulnerable coastal areas is of great importance for the development of coastal management plans. The purpose of this study is to assess the physical and social vulnerability of the Peloponnese (Greece) to coastal hazards. Two indices were estimated: The Coastal Vulnerability Index (CVI) and the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI). CVI allows six physical variablesto be related in a quantitative manner whilethe proposed SVI in this studycontains mainly demographic variables and was calculated for 73 coastal municipal communities. The results reveal that 17.2% of the shoreline (254.8 km) along the western and northwestern coast of the Peloponnese, as well as at the inner Messiniakos and Lakonikos Gulfs, is of high and very high physical vulnerability. High and very high social vulnerabilities characterize communities along the northwestern part of the study area, along the coasts of the Messinian and Cape Malea peninsulas, as well as at the western coast of Saronikos Gulf.