Martín-Prieto J.A., Roig-Munar, F.X., Pons G.X., Rodríguez-Perea A., Alvarado, M. and Mir-Gual M. 2013. Description of erosion processes in Spratt Bight (San Andrés Island, Colombia) using Sequential End Point Rates (EPR).

San Andrés is a coral island located in the Colombian Caribbean, 700 km northwest of the main land. Twelve kilometers in length and three kilometers in width, it is one of the most populated islands with 2.612 inhabitants per square kilometer. Its economy is based on tourism. Despite being protected from storms and hurricanes by a chain of reefs that stretches across the north and east of the island, beaches suffer significant erosion. Spratt Bight is the biggest and the most important beach of the island. Temporal evolution of Spratt Bight was analyzed and the End Point Rate for several periods (from the year 1984 to 2010) has been calculated. Although beach nourishment between 1984 and 1990, erosive processes are dominant all over the beach. Erosion rates reach up to 35 m with an average of −1.3 m/year, in its central part. The other erosive sector is placed in the half north of the beach, with a maximum of 20 m and an average of −0.7 m/year. Detected erosion can be attributed to the construction of two perpendicular structures to the shoreline and a promenade located on top of the upper beach. The rigidity of these facilities does not allow the natural evolution of the beach, disconnecting the beach from the dunes and causing significant losses of sand by wind action.