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Notes

Number 9 (2013)

A Technical Method on Calculating the Length of Coastline for Comparison Purposes

Submitted
May 6, 2015
Published
2013-05-30

Abstract

A quick web search illustrates the wide variation in the quoted lengths of the coastline of a unique State, with ratios from 1 to 100 and in some examples, even more. This illustrates the need for a common measuring method. The length of a coastline, for the purpose of compari-son between States, can be calculated according to the guidance and specifications described in this paper.This specification describes a harmonized approach to determining the length of a coastline. It may only be relevant for comparison purposes and should not to be regarded as definitive nor suitable for all purposes. Based on official ENC datasets, the advantage of this method is that it gives comparable results that can be easily verified.