Theory

• Coastal environments are open systems with a range of inputs, components/stores, flows/transfers and outputs that combine to create distinctive landscapes.
• When there is a balance between the inputs and outputs, then the system is said to be in a state of dynamic equilibrium.
• Coastal landscapes consist of a constantly changing assemblage of erosional and depositional landforms, they are the result of continuous change in the elements of a coastal system. As the system tends towards dynamic equilibrium, the processes operating in coastal systems continually shape the coastal landforms, creating the distinctive landscape features.