Implemented in the map tool
Our Coast, Our Future / CoSMoS
Point Blue Conservation Science / USGS · released 2013, updated regularly
Visit Our Coast, Our Future / CoSMoS
Built on USGS's Coastal Storm Modeling System, this tool dynamically models waves, storm surge, and sea-level rise together to map coastal flooding and erosion at high resolution.
General Information
- Geographic scope within coastal California
- California coast, including the Bay Area
- Tool release year and updates
- 2013, updated regularly
Projected Flood Information
- Annual flood risk
- No
- Annual flood risk (various return periods)
- No
- Base flood elevation
- No
- Coastal groundwater flooding
- No
- Erosion projections
- Yes
- FEMA flood zones
- No
- High tide flooding thresholds (minor/moderate/major)
- No
- King tide
- No
- Mapping uncertainty / confidence layers
- No
- Marsh migration space
- No
- Near-100-year storm scenario
- No
- Shoreline erosion
- No
- Storm surge / extreme tide
- Yes
- Stormwater / compound flooding
- No
- Wave run-up
- Yes
Shoreline Processes
- Coastal flood thresholds
- No
- Coastal groundwater
- No
- Compound flooding with stormwater runoff
- No
- Dynamic hydrodynamic modeling
- No
- Erosion / shoreline change
- Yes
- Habitat-based risk reduction
- No
- High tide flooding
- No
- Hurricane storm surge
- No
- King tide
- No
- Levee overtopping
- No
- Marsh migration
- No
- Marsh migration / habitat change
- No
- Regulatory base flood elevation
- No
- Riverine and coastal flood zones
- No
- SLR inundation
- Yes
- Shoreline erosion
- No
- Shoreline overtopping
- No
- Storm surge / extreme tide
- Yes
- Tide-gauge monitoring
- No
- Wave run-up
- Yes
Exposure Analysis Provided on Flooding Impacts to Assets
- Critical facilities
- No
- Economic / property value
- No
- Infrastructure & buildings
- Yes
- Natural resources / habitats
- Yes
- Population / demographics
- No
Data, Reports, and Summary Information Available
- Reports, summary info, or other analyses available for download
- Downloadable, high-resolution flood and erosion GIS layers.
General Information Regarding Sea Level Rise Model
- Base sea level rise model
- USGS CoSMoS dynamic wave / surge / SLR model (Barnard et al.).
Strengths and Limitations
- Top 3 strengths
- One of the few tools that dynamically models waves and erosion, not just static SLR
- Very high spatial resolution, down to about 2 meters
- Actively maintained by USGS with regular updates
- Top 3 limitations
- Heavier, more technical map interface than screening tools
- Statewide coverage was built out over years, so some regions arrived later
- Large data layers can be slow to load