It appears that much can be learned about inlet stability through study of the inlets of
the north shore of Long Island because of the substantial difference in coastal
environment as compared to the south shore and to most inlets on sandy coasts in general.
Study Site
The inlets investigated in this study, Mattituck Inlet and Goldsmith Inlet, are located
5.2 miles apart on the eastern end of the north shore of Long Island, NY. Inlets of
varying size are found along the south and north shores, as well as in the bays of Long
Island. Inlets on the north shore of Long Island have received little study, with the
exception of Stony Brook Harbor (Cooke 1985; Park 1985; Zarillo and Park 1987). The
inlets of Long Island's north shore vary greatly in size and configuration, from large
ones, such as Port Jefferson Harbor and Oyster Bay, to small inlets such as Mattituck
Inlet and Goldsmith Inlet (Figure 1-1). Port Jefferson Harbor and the entrance to Oyster
Bay are of comparable scale to the more extensively studied inlets of the south shore, but
their bay systems are much smaller.
Mattituck Inlet and Goldsmith Inlet are connected to Long Island Sound. Long
Island Sound is a semienclosed tide-dominated water body that communicates with the
Atlantic Ocean at both its eastern and western ends, via Block Island Sound and the East
River (and ultimately, New York Harbor) respectively. The relatively large mean tide
Previous Page
