Australia's coastline is facing increasing pressures from erosion, exacerbated by rising sea levels and extreme weather events. To determine which parts of the coast are vulnerable, it’s crucial to identify areas protected by coastal structures such as sea walls, groynes, and wharfs.
This repo and accompanying RMarkdown notebook document the analysis and efforts to consolidate spatial data on coastal protection structures, such as sea walls, groynes, and wharfs, across Australia's coastline. The project addresses the urgent need for a national-level dataset by sourcing data from various state governments and identifying gaps in coverage. The dataset integrates contributions from OpenStreetMap (OSM), Smartline, and state-based government databases, resulting in a research-quality geospatial file. Key attributes include the location and type of coastal structures, with data standardised for consistency across regions. Limitations are noted, such as the absence of government-supplied data for certain regions and potential accuracy issues with OSM-sourced information. The dataset is intended for research purposes, supporting efforts to assess coastal risks and guide future protection measures. Ongoing updates to datasets will extend to not only consider engineered hard structures but also include datasets of nature-based coastal protection (e.g., restored reefs and coastal vegetation).
O'Grady, Julian; Trenham, Claire; Morris, Rebecca; & NESP Climate Systems Hub Knowledge Brokers (2024): Mapping Australia's Coastal Defences Structures: Understanding the Gaps and the Need for a National Dataset. v2. CSIRO. Service Collection. http://hdl.handle.net/102.100.100/660109?index=1
All data OSM data is licensed under OpenStreetMap’s license, the Open Database Licence. Any derived data and products must also carry the same licence. You should make sure you understand that licence before publishing any derived datasets.
For the Australian State Government data:
VIC data CC-BY-4
TAS data CC-BY-3
QLD data CC-BY-4
WA data CC-BY-4