Sediment cells

• what is a sediment cell


  a stretch of coastline usually bordered with two prominent headlands that is a closed system in equkiariam
• How many sediment cells are there in England and Wales?

  11
• example of a sediment cell


  Flanborough head (source)

  Holderness coast(transfer)

  Spurn head(sink)
• what are the components of a sediment cell

  source, transfer, sink
• what is an source, use an example


  an input where sediment enters the cell, for example cliff erosion by mass movement, as the dominant process is erosion
• what is a transfer


  sediment moves a alongshore, for example by longshore drift
• what is a sink, use an example


  an output of sediment where the dominant process if deposition, so depositional landforms created

  (eg) sand dines, bars, spits
• what is a sediment budget


  The difference between the amount of sediment that enters the system (inputs) and the amount that leaves the system (outputs)
• what is a positive budget

  When there are more inputs than outputs to the system
• what is a negative budget


  When the outputs are higher than the inputs to a system
• what can impact a sediment cell

  human intervention