Potential hydrometeorological threshold values of the coastal hazard—an example from the Polish Southern Baltic coast

This paper analyses the spatiotemporal variability of extreme hydrometeorological events at the Polish coast of the Baltic Sea. Extreme precipitation events and storm surges determine to the largest extent the contemporary transformations of sea coastal geoecosystems and represent the major factors that disturb their functioning. The statistical characteristics of these values were computed from the data of six meteorological and tide-gage stations located at the Baltic seaside. Daily data on the amount of precipitation and the sea level for the period of 1966–2009 were used for the study. Annual and daily maximum values of precipitation and sea level are presented for the Southern Baltic coast. The threshold values of the hydrometeorological parameters considered in the study allow assessing the hazard caused by the disturbance of the functional stability of the sea coastal geoecosystems.