151
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to
Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
S. J. Culver (ed.), Troubled Waters, Springer Climate,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52383-1_10
Chapter 10
Earthquake-Driven Coastal Change: Ghost
Forests, Graveyards and “Komodo
Dragons”
Andrea D. Hawkes
Abstract Like Indonesia prior to the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami,
much of the west coast of North America (northern California through Vancouver
Island BC) has had no instrumentally or historically recorded great earthquakes and
tsunamis. This lack of events is a veil of safety that the geologic record indicates is
false. Analysis of sediments deposited by these events provides important information about prior and potential earthquake and tsunami characteristics (magnitude,
frequency, runup, etc.) fundamental to having an informed population and hazard
preparation and mitigation. Collecting these sediments requires fieldwork, my
favorite part of the job, which often provides some unique experiences. In this chapter, ghost forests and a graveyard bookend paleoearthquake fieldwork in coastal
Oregon and a dance with a ‘Komodo Dragon’ in coastal Malaysia makes sampling
the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami an experience I will never forget.
Keywords Earthquake · Tsunami · Land deformation · Cascadia subduction zone
· Pacific Northwest · Indonesia · Ghost forests · Sediment · Foraminifera ·
Geologic reconstructions
Ghost Forests and Graveyards
When most people in the U.S. think about earthquakes, what likely comes to mind
is the great 1906 San Francisco earthquake, which caused much destruction to the
thriving city and surrounding region. That earthquake occurred along what is termed
a ‘transform’ fault where two tectonic plates (tectonic plates being the jigsaw puzzle
A. D. Hawkes (*)
Earth and Ocean Sciences Department and Centre for Marine Science,
University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, NC, USA
e-mail: hawkesa@uncw.edu
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to
Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
S. J. Culver (ed.), Troubled Waters, Springer Climate,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52383-1_10
Chapter 10
Earthquake-Driven Coastal Change: Ghost
Forests, Graveyards and “Komodo
Dragons”
Andrea D. Hawkes
Abstract Like Indonesia prior to the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami,
much of the west coast of North America (northern California through Vancouver
Island BC) has had no instrumentally or historically recorded great earthquakes and
tsunamis. This lack of events is a veil of safety that the geologic record indicates is
false. Analysis of sediments deposited by these events provides important information about prior and potential earthquake and tsunami characteristics (magnitude,
frequency, runup, etc.) fundamental to having an informed population and hazard
preparation and mitigation. Collecting these sediments requires fieldwork, my
favorite part of the job, which often provides some unique experiences. In this chapter, ghost forests and a graveyard bookend paleoearthquake fieldwork in coastal
Oregon and a dance with a ‘Komodo Dragon’ in coastal Malaysia makes sampling
the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami an experience I will never forget.
Keywords Earthquake · Tsunami · Land deformation · Cascadia subduction zone
· Pacific Northwest · Indonesia · Ghost forests · Sediment · Foraminifera ·
Geologic reconstructions
Ghost Forests and Graveyards
When most people in the U.S. think about earthquakes, what likely comes to mind
is the great 1906 San Francisco earthquake, which caused much destruction to the
thriving city and surrounding region. That earthquake occurred along what is termed
a ‘transform’ fault where two tectonic plates (tectonic plates being the jigsaw puzzle
A. D. Hawkes (*)
Earth and Ocean Sciences Department and Centre for Marine Science,
University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, NC, USA
e-mail: hawkesa@uncw.edu