Abstract:
The coastal zone of mainland Portugal is characterized by its
morpho-sedimentary diversity such as estuaries, lagoons, barrier
islands, beaches, dunes and cliffs. The high population density and
the multiplicity of land use, occupation and activities, makes it an
area of great national strategic value. This transforms the coastal zone
into a multi-hazard zone, where the occurrences related to coastal
flooding and overtopping stand out. In the present work, a multidi mensional methodology called Coastal Territorial Vulnerability Index
(CTVI) was developed and applied in three selected areas with a
historical record of coastal impacts, to analyze, evaluate and interpret
the local vulnerability. The methodology considers four components
of coastal territorial vulnerability: morphology, land value, buildings
and public areas characteristics. These four components are combined
to calculate the CTVI. The results highlight the differences for the
analyzed areas, allowing the differentiation of natural and artificial
areas. In the natural areas a moderate CTVI predominates, while in
the latter, a high and very high CTVI stands out. The results contribute
to the development of a comprehensive coastal flood risk assessment
and forecasting the impacts
