Assessing the Vulnerability of an Industrial City to Predicted Sea Level Rise using SRTM and GPS Observations: The Case of Yanbu, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

This study examines the different scenarios of sea level rise and its consequences on a coastal industrial city. Analyses of these scenarios were carried out using Digital Elevation Model (DEM) from Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) with high resolution remote sensing data (for visualization) within Geospatial Information System (GIS) environment. The SRTM data was validated by GPS observations. A minimum scenario of SLR of 1m by the year 2100 was adopted in assesing the vulnerability of the study area. The extracted layers of vulnerable areas were overlaid on the demographic and land use data of the city to estimate the likely impact on land use and population of the area. The study shows a root mean square error (RMSE) value of 2.07 for SRTM values corresponding to GPS observations that are less than or equal to 3m. The results show that the industrial city is vulnerable to predicted sea level rise.