1970s Shorelines for the Main Island of Puerto Rico

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Frequently anticipated questions:

What does this data set describe?

Title: 1970s Shorelines for the Main Island of Puerto Rico
Abstract:
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) maintains shoreline positions for the United States coasts from both older sources, such as aerial photos or topographic surveys, as well as contemporary sources like lidar point clouds and digital elevation models (DEMs). These shorelines are compiled and analyzed in the Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS) software to compute rates of change. It is useful to keep a record of historical shoreline positions as a method of monitoring change over time to identify areas most susceptible to erosion or accretion. These data can help coastal managers understand which areas of the coast are vulnerable to change.
This data release and other associated products represent an expansion of the USGS national-scale shoreline database to include Puerto Rico and its islands, Vieques and Culebra. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the Coastal Research and Planning Institute of Puerto Rico (CoRePI, part of the Graduate School of Planning at the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras Campus) has derived and compiled a database of historical shoreline positions using a variety of methods. These shorelines are used to measure the rate of shoreline change over time.
  1. How might this data set be cited?
    Barreto-Orta, Maritza, Martí, Laura, Silva, Leticia, Gladkikh, Tatiana, Alvira, Zulimar, Hernández-Montcourt, Nias, Maldonado-González, Rubén, Bracero-Marrero, Loderay, and Himmelstoss, Emily A., 20211117, 1970s Shorelines for the Main Island of Puerto Rico: data release DOI:10.5066/P9SEUAHC, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole, MA.

    Online Links:

    This is part of the following larger work.

    Bracero-Marrero, Loderay, Barreto-Orta, Maritza, Hernández-Montcourt, Nias, Maldonado-González, Rubén, Himmelstoss, Emily A., and Heslin, Julia L., 20211130, A GIS Compilation of Vector Shorelines and Shoreline Classification for Puerto Rico from 1970 and 2010: data release doi:10.5066/P9SEUAHC, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details:
    suggested citation: Bracero-Marrero, L., Barreto-Orta, M., Hernández-Montcourt, N., Maldonado-González, R., Himmelstoss, E.A., Heslin, J.L. 2021, A GIS Compilation of Vector Shorelines and Shoreline Classification for Puerto Rico from 1970 and 2010: U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/10.5066/P9SEUAHC
  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?
    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -67.2715
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -65.5900
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 18.5159
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 17.9272
  3. What does it look like?
    https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalog/file/get/610c20d1d34ef8d705698348?name=PR_1970_MainIsland_Shoreline_Classification.jpg (JPEG)
    Map view of data
  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?
    Beginning_Date: 01-Jan-1964
    Ending_Date: 01-Jan-1977
    Currentness_Reference:
    ground condition
  5. What is the general form of this data set?
    Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: vector digital data
  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?
    1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?
      This is a Vector data set. It contains the following vector data types (SDTS terminology):
      • String (1680)
    2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?
      Horizontal positions are specified in geographic coordinates, that is, latitude and longitude. Latitudes are given to the nearest 0.0198254329. Longitudes are given to the nearest 0.0207101049. Latitude and longitude values are specified in Decimal seconds. The horizontal datum used is WGS_1984.
      The ellipsoid used is WGS_84.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378137.0.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/298.257223563.
  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?
    Shoreline_Puerto_Rico_1970_Main_Island.shp
    Table containing attribute information associated with the dataset. (Source: Producer Defined)
    FID
    Internal feature number. (Source: ESRI) Sequential unique whole numbers that are automatically generated.
    Shape
    Feature geometry. (Source: ESRI) Coordinates defining the features.
    USER
    Person who digitized the line section. (Source: Producer Defined)
    ValueDefinition
    Tatiana GladkikhCharacter string of length 254
    Leticia SilvaCharacter string of length 254
    Laura MartíCharacter string of length 254
    Zulimar AlviraCharacter string of length 254
    SHORE_TYPE
    The shoreline general type. (Source: Producer Defined)
    ValueDefinition
    BEACHUnconsolidated sediment deposit (sand and gravel) (Komar, 1998).
    ROCKYRocky features including rocky outcrop (volcanic/sedimentary and/or metamorphic), eolinite and/or beach rock formations.
    VEGETATIONShoreline type that includes wetlands such as mangrove, forests, pasture, and other vegetation.
    ANTHROPOGENICAny type of anthropogenic structure on the coast. This may range from small to large structures.
    NO VISIBILITYAreas where the classification was not possible to perform. Example: presence of clouds.
    SHORE_DESC
    A more detailed classification of the coast. In this field, the shoreline proxies are identified. (Source: Producer Defined)
    ValueDefinition
    WET/DRY LINE OR RUN UP MAXIMAThe line between the dry and wet zones behind the High Water Line (HWL).
    GROUNDWATER EXITDarker area created after the wave has broken and returns to the water.
    INSTANTANEOUS LINEWhere a wave breaks; often observed as a foaming mass of water.
    BARE LANDExposed rock, inland or on the coastline with little or no vegetation cover, and with a low slope.
    OTHERAny type of classification that was not identified.
    IMG_REF
    Images used to digitize the shoreline. (Source: Producer Defined)
    ValueDefinition
    Aerial Images Main Island 1964, 1971, 1973, 1977Years when aerial photo survey was conducted.
    IMG_DATE
    Date of the images used in this study. A month and day of January 1 was assigned for all images since no exact date was available. (Source: Producer Defined)
    Range of values
    Minimum:01/01/1964
    Maximum:01/01/1977
    AREA_COV
    Geographical area that features line. (Source: Producer Defined)
    ValueDefinition
    Main IslandMain Island of Puerto Rico covering 76 municipalities
    UNCY
    Uncertainty value for the shoreline derived from the Georeferencing error (RMSE), the digitization error, and HWL position error. (Source: Producer Defined)
    Range of values
    Minimum:5.4
    Maximum:5.4
    YEAR
    The year of the shoreline taken from the IMG_DATE field. (Source: Producer Defined)
    Range of values
    Minimum:1964
    Maximum:1977

Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)
    • Maritza Barreto-Orta
    • Laura Martí
    • Leticia Silva
    • Tatiana Gladkikh
    • Zulimar Alvira
    • Nias Hernández-Montcourt
    • Rubén Maldonado-González
    • Loderay Bracero-Marrero
    • Emily A. Himmelstoss
  2. Who also contributed to the data set?
    "Shoreline mapping, change estimation and forecasting for the coast of Puerto Rico impacted by Hurricanes Irma and Maria" Grant awarded to the Graduate School of Planning, University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras Campus (UPR-RP) by the Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center of the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Maritza Barreto-Orta, Principal Investigator, Graduate School of Planning; Loderay I.M. Bracero-Marrero, Research Assistant Lead Nias Hernández-Montcourt, Research Assistant; Rubén O. Maldonado-González, Research Assistant. Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, USGS: Emily Himmelstoss, Project Manager; Rachel Henderson, Researcher IV; Julia Heslin, Geographer.
  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
    Maritza Barreto-Orta
    Coastal Research and Planning Institute of Puerto Rico (CoRePI-PR), Graduate School of Planning, UPR-RP
    Principal Investigator
    Station 1001
    San Juan, Puerto Rico
    Puerto Rico

    787764000, ext. 85118 or 85119 (voice)
    maritza.barreto@upr.edu; coastal.planning@upr.edu

Why was the data set created?

The shoreline data in this data release were digitized from georeferenced photographs, using the high-water line, ground water exit point, wet-dry line and instantaneous water line as specified in the shoreline type description of the data and attribute section of the metadata. This data release also provides a detailed classification of the coast from aerial photo interpretations. These data are used in conjunction with other compiled shorelines provided in complementary data releases to calculate rates of shoreline change.

How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?
    Aerial Images Puerto Rico Main Island (source 1 of 1)
    Photogrammetry Office, Puerto Rico Highway Authority, 2020, Puerto Rico Main Island Rectified Aerial Images (1964, 1971, 1973 ,1977) collected from the Photogrammetry Office, Puerto Rico Highway Authority.

    Online Links:

    • Not available

    Type_of_Source_Media: Digital
    Source_Contribution:
    These images were used to digitize the shoreline proxies and other shoreline features
  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?
    Date: 01-May-2016 (process 1 of 3)
    Shoreline Change Digitization Process
    The following step outlines the process from a previous effort. The shoreline derived from 1970s aerial images was digitized in a previous project sponsored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) through the Coastal Zone Management Division at Puerto Rico Natural Resources Department (DRNA) (Contract Number 2015-000101 Assessment of beach morphology at Puerto Rico Island). The images were purchased from the Puerto Rico Highways & Transportation Authority Photogrammetry Office.
    Aerial photos taken from 1964 to 1977 were used to create the shoreline of Puerto Rico for 1970s period. The approximate percentage of shoreline extracted by date was the following--> 1977 (56% approx.), 1973 (10%), 1971 (33% approx.), and 1964 (1%). Therefore, most of the shoreline was extracted from 1977 and 1971.
    The digitization process was divided into four main sections: PR northeast, PR northwest, PR-southwest, and PR-southeast.
    In ArcPro, a new file geodatabase was created, followed by a feature dataset. In the feature dataset, an empty line feature class was created for digitizing the shoreline. The aerial photo was digitized at the 1:1000 scale. The digitization began at the extreme southeastern point of the photo, moving counterclockwise towards the northwestern point.
    The principal objective of the digitization exercise was to identify and draw the wet/dry line; the instantaneous water line on the aerial photo was used as a reference. Following shoreline definitions developed by Boak and Turner (2005), the next seaward line after the instantaneous water line was identified as the “groundwater exit point”, and the second line was identified as the “wet/dry line”. The priority was to identify and draw the wet/dry line; when that line was not visible, a groundwater exit point was drawn. In some cases, mainly located on the south coast of the Island, it was hard to identify the wet/dry line due to the brightness of the image and/or the coastal geomorphic configuration. The main reasons for insufficient visibility in aerial photos were the shadows, trees, and brightness in the image. Additionally, problems with poor raster resolution, overlapping of images that did not always align, and difficulty in identifying the wet/dry or groundwater line. Also, geometrically corrected images from the 1970s did not always align with orthophotos of 2010. Person who carried out this activity:
    Orlando Santaella
    Coastal Research and Planning Institute of Puerto Rico (CoRePI-PR), Graduate School of Planning, UPR-RP.
    Research Assistant Lead
    Station 1001
    San Juan, Puerto Rico
    Puerto Rico

    787-764-0000 ext. 85118 or 85119 (voice)
    coastal.planning@upr.edu
    Data sources used in this process:
    • Aerial Images Puerto Rico Main Island
    Data sources produced in this process:
    • Preliminary Shoreline Main Island 1970
    Date: 25-May-2021 (process 2 of 3)
    The scheme of the 1970s shoreline, from now on referred to as the "1970s NOAA shoreline," was standardized to match the new scheme created for the present project: "Shoreline mapping, change estimation and forecasting for the coast of Puerto Rico impacted by Hurricanes Irma and Maria."
    The 1970s NOAA shoreline classification scheme was reclassified to match the current project scheme. An ArcGIS Pro Python Notebook and a stand-alone script in Python 2.5 were used to streamline the process.
    This previous classification was reclassified using the subtypes and domains in this project: None--> NO VISIBILITY Non-Identified--> NO VISIBILITY, OTHER Rocky Coast--> ROCKY, BARE LAND River Mouth--> NO VISIBILITY Vegetation--> VEGETATION, Man-Made Structure--> ANTHROPOGENIC Wet/Dry Line--> BEACH, WET/DRY LINE OR RUN UP MAXIMA Groundwater Exit Point--> BEACH, GROUNDWATER EXIT POINT Eolianite--> ROCKY, BARE LAND Beach Rock--> ROCKY, BARE LAND
    After the shoreline was reclassified to this new scheme, topology rules were run to correct errors. This feature polyline was corrected to avoid overlapping of the lines, repeated features or intersections. However, this feature polyline is not a continuous line. Gaps can be found along the line. Person who carried out this activity:
    Loderay Bracero Marrero
    Coastal Research and Planning Institute of Puerto Rico (CoRePI-PR), Graduate School of Planning, UPR-RP.
    Research Assistant Lead
    Station 1001
    San Juan, Puerto Rico
    Puerto Rico

    787-764-0000 ext. 85118 or 85119 (voice)
    loderay.bracero@upr.edu; coastal.planning@upr.edu
    Data sources used in this process:
    • Preliminary Shoreline Main Island 1970
    Data sources produced in this process:
    • Shoreline Main Island 1970 feature class
    Date: 2021 (process 3 of 3)
    The geodatabase was transferred to USGS for final processing steps. The geodatabase feature class was exported as a shapefile (ArcToolbox >> Conversion >> To Shapefile >> Feature Class to Shapefile (multiple)), ensuring that the "Transfer field domain descriptions" was checked in the Environment Settings.
    A YEAR field was added and calculated based on the IMG_DATE field so shorelines could be easily grouped by year.
    Finally, the shapefile was projected (ArcToolbox >> Data Management >> Projections and Transformations >> Project) to WGS 1984 using the Puerto_Rico_To_NAD_1983 + Puerto_Rico_to_WGS_1984_4 geographic transformation. Person who carried out this activity:
    Julia L. Heslin
    U.S. Geological Survey, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
    Geographer
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA
    USA

    508-457-2262 (voice)
    jheslin@usgs.gov
    Data sources used in this process:
    • Shoreline Main Island 1970 feature class
    Data sources produced in this process:
    • Shoreline_Puerto_Rico_Main_Island_1970.shp
  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?
    Barreto-Orta, Maritza, Santaella, Orlando, Silva, Leticia, Gladkikh, Tatiana, Alvira, Zulimar, Martí, Laura, Reyes, Alejandro, Narvaéz, Dariel, Cabrera, Nahir, and Díaz, Elizabeth, 20170131, Assessment of beach morphology at Puerto Rico Island: Puerto Rico and Caribbean Beach Network, Planning School, University of Puerto Rico Rio Piedras Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico.

    Online Links:

    Boak, Elizabeth H., and Turner, Ian L., 2005, Shoreline Definition and Detection: A Review: Journal of Coastal Research Vol. 214, Coastal Education and Research Foundation, West Palm Beach, FL, USA.

    Online Links:

    Komar, P.D., 1998, Beach Processes and Sedimentation: Prentice-Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ, USA.

    Heslin, Julia L., Henderson, Rachel E., and Himmelstoss, Emily A., 20211130, Historical Shorelines for Puerto Rico from 1901 to 1987: data release DOI:10.5066/P9CLXCEG, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

    Heslin, Julia L., Henderson, Rachel E., and Himmelstoss, Emily A., 20211130, A GIS Compilation of Vector Shorelines for Puerto Rico from 2015 to 2018: data release DOI:10.5066/P9AZYW74, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

    Henderson, Rachel E., Heslin, Julia L., and Himmelstoss, Emily A., 20211130, Puerto Rico Shoreline Change: A GIS Compilation of Shorelines, Baselines, Intersects, and Change Rates using the Digital Shoreline Analysis System version 5.1: data release DOI:10.5066/P9FNRRN0, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

  1. How well have the observations been checked?
    Quality Control (QC) was conducted with the principal investigator and the research assistants. The lines were revised and reclassified, if needed, by the research assistants.
  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?
    For the 1970 shoreline, we accounted for the following errors in meters: 1) Georeferencing (RMSE): 4.00; 2) Digitizing error: 2.00; 3) Uncertainty HWL: 3.00. We calculated the total error by: first, squaring each of the errors, summing all of the squared errors, and finally, taking the square root of the sum. The total horizontal error for this shoreline is 5.4 meters.
  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?
  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?
    This shoreline includes the shoreline feature for Puerto Rico Main Island. It does not include Vieques and Culebra municipalities.
  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?
    Topology rules were tested for each feature class polyline. No additional digitizations were made from the previous shoreline. Only topology errors were corrected.
    Topology rules:
    Must Not Overlap (Line) Must Not Intersect (Line) Must Not have Dangles (Line) Must Not Self Overlap (Line) Must Not Self Intersect (Line)

How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?
Access_Constraints None.
Use_Constraints Users must be aware of metadata accuracy conditions and bear responsibility for the appropriate use of the information with respect to possible errors, scale, resolution, rectification, positional accuracy, development methodology, time period, environmental and climatic conditions and other circumstances specific to these data. The user should refer to the accompanying metadata notes for a description of the data and data development procedures. The data herein, including but not limited to geographic data, tabular data, analytical data, electronic data structures or files, are provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, or statutory, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. Please, recognize the Coastal Research and Planning Institute of Puerto Rico (CoRePI-PR), Graduate School of Planning, University of Puerto Rico (UPR), as the originator.
  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)
    U.S. Geological Survey - ScienceBase
    Denver Federal Center, Building 810, Mail Stop 302
    Denver, CO
    United States

    1-888-275-8747 (voice)
    sciencebase@usgs.gov
  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?
  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?
    Unless otherwise stated, all data, metadata and related materials are considered to satisfy the quality standards relative to the purpose for which the data were collected. Although these data and associated metadata have been reviewed for accuracy and completeness no warranty expressed or implied is made regarding the display or utility of the data on any other system or for general or scientific purposes, nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty.
  4. How can I download or order the data?

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:
Last modified: 19-Mar-2024
Metadata author:
Julia L. Heslin
U.S. Geological Survey, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
Geographer
384 Woods Hole Road
Woods Hole, MA
USA

508-457-2262 (voice)
508-457-2310 (FAX)
whsc_data_contact@usgs.gov
Contact_Instructions:
The metadata contact email address is a generic address in the event the person is no longer with USGS. (updated on 20240319)
Metadata standard:
Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)
This page is <https://cmgds.marine.usgs.gov/catalog/whcmsc/SB_data_release/DR_P9SEUAHC/Shoreline_Puerto_Rico_Main_Island_1970_metadata.faq.html>
Generated by mp version 2.9.51 on Wed Jun 26 15:25:08 2024