human activity on coasts

• hard engineering is building artificial structures to control natural processes
• Soft engineering is the use of natural processes to reduce the impact of coastal erosion
• what are the three strategies

  holding the line

  managed retreat and realignment

  no action
• Hard engineering examples 


  Groynes

  Sea wall

  reventments

  Rock Armour + breakwaters

  gabions
• economic activities can have unintentional impacts on the coast
• Impacts of the extractive industries on the the coastline

  Energy (coal, gas,wind,wave)

  • majority of energy is offshore and extracted from an oil well into an oil rig, this has no signifiant impact on the coastline other than possible spillages from the oil which can change the chemical composition of the water
  • A port must be built to receive oil and electrical transfers this acts almost like a sea wall. It refracts waves but also prevents material transfers.
• Impacts of the Fishing Industries on the coastline

  harbours act as arterial barriers

  offshore trawling an result in the suspension of sediments

  the biggest impacts come from pond farming of fish, oysters and shrimp it causes different erosion rates and the removal of mangrove trees
• what impact do commercial activities have on the coastline

  • fibre optics have to be placed under the sea
  • sewage can promote algal growth increasing biological weathering as sewage is sometimes released into the sea which can provide nutrients for plants and result in more solution from chemicals
• Ports 


  • harbours stop sedimentary flow as sediment will wash past bays sp the sand in them will either be maintained or will decrease
  • will reinforce cliffs behind it preventing erosion
  • Dredged material will move sediment into the coastal zone which may widen the estuary
  • modern ports are built away from urban areas keeping activity away from cities, spits sometimes form off of them and beaches may extend
• An example of a modern day port is the one just east of Cameroon into the Gulf of Guinea