Hard + soft engineering

• what is hard engineering

  man made structures used to defend the coastline from erosion
• what are the 5 hard engineering strategies

  sea wall

  groynes

  rock armour

  revetments

  offshore breakwaters
• what is a sea wall

  large concrete wall built against the coastline
• benefits of a sea wall

  -long lasting granite highly protective

  -gives people a sense of security
• limitations of a sea wall

  -unsightly and make it harder to access the beach

  -most expensive (£5000 per metre)
• what is a groyne


  A wooden barrier built at right angles to the beach to prevent longshore drift moving sediment down the beach, thus widening the beach
• benefits of groynes

  a wider beach is good for recreational amenities, encouraging tourism

  a wider beach acts as a buffer to the waves
• limitations of groynes

  act as an obstacle on the beach

  starves areas down the coastline
• what is rock armour

  large boulders (often granite) that dissipate and absorb wave energy
• benefits of rock armour

  fairly cheap

  flexible in use, can be used at the base of a sea wall or alone
• limitations of rock armour

  make access to the beach harder

  unsightly
• What are revetments?

  slanted wooden structure parallel to the coastline
• what are the benefits if revetments

  cheaper than a sea wall

  allows linear access along beach and downs prevent longshore drift
• what are the limitations of revetments

  need constant maintenance as wood may break
• what are offshore breakwaters

  rock barriers places in the shallow water of the nearshore in short sections, in order to dissipate and absorb wave energy to reduce impact in foreshore and backshore
• strengths of offshore breakwater

  allow long shore drift to occur

  dont impact the beach as obstacles

  sheltered areas behind them for water sports
• limitations of offshore breakwater

  costly

  may requite other strategies with it such as a sea wall
• what is soft engineering

  working with the natural environment to protect the coastline
• what are the t=three types of soft engineering

  dune stabilisation

  cliff regrading and drainage

  beach nourishment
• what is sustainable coastline management


  ensuring management of the coastline is designed to cope with future threats by considering a wider coastal zone (physical coastline, livelihoods, the communities, infrastructure etc)
• why is sustainable coastline management needed

  due ti increased future risk of flooding and erosion due to rising sea levels and increased storm events (climate change)
• outline some examples of sustainable management

  -creating new livelihoods before current ones such as fishing and farming are lost

  -managing use of coastal resources such as fish

  -relocating communities away from flood risk
• why does sustainable coastal management cause conflict

  -peoples income is threatened by limiting use of coastal resources (those in agriculture and fishing)

  -relocation disrupts communities