Recent changing patterns of the Changjiang (Yangtze River) Estuary caused by human activities

To evaluate the controlling factors for coastline change of the Changjiang (Yangtze River) Estuary since 1974, we extracted the mean high tide line from multi-temporal remote sensing images that span from 1974 to 2014 at 2-year intervals. We chose 42 scenes to constrain the changing pattern of the Changjiang Estuary coastline, and implemented GIS technology to analyze the area change of the Changjiang (Yangtze) Subaerial Delta. Runoff, sediment discharge and coastal engineering were withal considered in the analysis of the coastline changes. The coastline has transgressed seaward since 1974, and a part of it presents inter-annual variations. The area of the Changjiang Subaerial Delta increased by 871 km 2 , with a net accretion rate of 21.8 km 2 /a. Based on the change of sediment discharge due to the major projects in the Changjiang River Basin, we divided the changing pattern of the coastline into three stages: the slow accretion stage (1974–1986), the moderate accretion stage (1987–2002), and the rapid accretion stage (2003–2014). Liner regression analysis illustrated that there is a significantly positive correlation between the area changes and sediment discharge in the Chongming Eastern Shoal and Jiuduansha. This suggested that sediment load has a fundamental effect on the evolution of the Changjiang Estuary. Construction of Deep Waterway in the North Passage of the Changjiang River (1998–2010) led to a rapid accretion in the Hengsha Eastern Shoal and Jiuduansha by influencing the hydrodynamics in North Passage. Coastal engineering such as reclamation and harbor construction can also change the morphology of the Changjiang Estuary. We defined a contribution rate of area change to assess the impact of reclamation on the evolution of Changjiang Estuary. It turned out that more than 45.3% of area increment of the Changjiang Estuary was attributed to reclamation.