CoastSnap

As part of the citizen science segment of Future Coast Charmouth we have teamed up with South West Coastal Monitoring and the University of Plymouth to install a CoastSnap on Charmouth seafront. 

CoastSnap has been installed at 37 locations around SW England to encourage members of the public to take a picture of the current state of the local shoreline.

Typically for most coastlines, there is limited observation data available to provide an understanding of the rates and magnitudes of shoreline response from storm events and longer-term underlying coastal processes. Recent advances in smartphone camera-lens technology allows untapped opportunities for shoreline monitoring using publicly sourced imagery. Thousands of people visit our beaches every day, carrying camera devices more advanced than the technology used over the past several decades in coastal imaging. Hence, CoastSnap offers beach and coastal managers an insight into the continual erosion and recovery cycles along with long term changes occurring along our beaches, while also acting as an effective community engagement tool, encouraging members of the public to learn more about their beach and how they undergo change.

The Charmouth CoastSnap has been recommissioned after its removal from West Bay's East Beach given that the SW Coast Path in that location has now shut. 

How to get involved?

When you are passing by the CoastSnap board, look out for the camera mount and join in with the monitoring programme: Place your smartphone on its side in the camera mount so that the camera is facing the beach through the gap. Take your photo, without using zoom, square or panoramic. Carefully remove your phone and share your photo with us either by:

Submitting on our website http://southwest.coastalmonitoring.org/coastsnap/ 

Emailing us at: coastal.observatory@plymouth.ac.uk 

The data collected through CoastSnap will be used to evaluate change over time on the beach. It is the hope that this information may also be supported by a study from a Plymouth University Masters student.

Read more about CoastSnap on our Dorset Coast Forum page: CoastSnap | Dorset Coast Forum 

or visit the CoastSnap website. Coastsnap - Southwest Coastal Monitoring