CONCLUSIONS

The coastal vulnerability index (CVI) provides insight into the relative potential of coastal change due to future sea-level rise. The maps and data presented here can be viewed in at least two ways:

1) as an example of where physical changes are most likely to occur as sea-level rises; and

2) as a planning tool for the Cape Cod National Seashore.

As ranked in this study, geomorphology and regional coastal slope are the most important variables in determining the CVI for CACO. Wave height, shoreline change, and tide range contribute only minor spatial variability in the coastal vulnerability index. The rate of sea-level rise is a constant value for the entire park.
CACO preserves a dynamic natural environment, which must be understood in order to be managed properly. The CVI is one way that a park can assess objectively the natural factors that contribute to the evolution of the coastal zone, and thus how the park may evolve in the future.