New research device now in place to measure storm surge in Northumberland Strait

The Municipality of Cumberland is hoping to predict which sections of its coastline are most vulnerable to damage by installing a new monitoring device to measure tides and storm surges on a wharf along the Northumberland Strait. 

"The municipality will take the results from it and use it in its own land-use planning and emergency management planning," said Steve Ferguson, the senior adviser on climate change and special projects for the municipality. 

"That will make sure that we have the most accurate and most useful information going forward for decades really." 

The municipality and Nova Scotia Community College are working together on the project. Until now it's been difficult to measure the local impact of rising seas and storm surges because the closest monitoring stations are near Shediac, N.B., and in Pictou County, N.S.

Research scientist Tim Webster and his team from NSCC were in Northport recently to place a gauge on the side of the wharf in the harbour. They're hoping the tide gauge will provide information that can be used in planning developments along the coastline. It could also help determine areas where no development should be considered at all.

"Basically as the water level comes up and there is more water over the sensor, then we can calculate how much water is up above it," said Webster. "It records the water level and temperature every 15 minutes, 24 hours a day."

Monitoring storm surges 

The new sensor is battery operated, unlike similar machines used throughout the Maritimes that have been tied into the electrical grid and could not record during big storms when power was knocked out.

"The best way to get accurate information of storm surges or high-water events is through actual observation and empirical measurement," said Webster. "It will take time to build up the record of these measurements but we can also observe relative sea level rise through time with these gauges."

Residents along the Northumberland Shore in Cumberland County have always dealt with the risk of damage from storm surges combined with high tides along areas of vulnerable coastline. With climate change bringing sea levels higher and more frequent storms, including hurricanes, the data gathered by the new device could become critical in how municipalities across the province plan to deal with it.

Research Nova Scotia provided over $165,000 to support the project.