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Waites Island is an undeveloped barrier island
located at the northern end of the South Carolina coastline.
The ~5 km long island is bounded by Little River Inlet to the
north and Hog Inlet to the south. A transect from the sea to
the landward will encounter the following environments: beach, dune, a
brackish water (intermediate between salt & fresh water) wetland, a landward beach/dune ridge system and
marsh. This older landward ridge system was likely formed at different
times since 4000 years ago, with the current beach potentially
forming seaward of the landward ridge within the last 300 years.
Since sea level is currently rising, understanding these historical changes may allow for
better decisions on how to manage shoreline retreat.
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