Coastal Landforms

• Backshore is the upper beach closest to the land, including any cliffs or sand dunes
• A concordant coast is a coastline where bands of alternate geology run parallel to the coast.
• A dalmatian coast is a concordant coastline with several river valleys running perpendicular to the coast. They become flooded to produce parallel long islands and long inlets
• A discordant coast is a coastline where bands of alternate geology run perpendicular to the shore
• An emergent coast is a coastline that is advancing relative to the sea level at the time
• A fjord is a long, narrow inlet deeper in the middle section than at the mouth, created when sea levels rise relative to the land, flooding coastal valleys
• The foreshore is the lower part of the beach covered twice a day at high tide (the part of the beach that receives the most regular wave action)
• A high-energy environment is a coast where wave action is predominantly large destructive waves, causing erosion
• A low-energy environment is a coast where wave action is predominantly small, constructive waves, causing deposition and leading to beach accretion
• Nearshore is the area before the shore where the wave steepens and breaks before they reach the shore and then reform before breaking on the beach. It extends from the low-tide zone and then out to sea
• A ria is a narrow, winding inlet which is deepest at the mouth, formed when sea levels rise, causing coastal valleys to flood
• A submergent coast is a coast that is sinking relative to the sea level of the time
• At high-energy coastlines, hydraulic action and abrasion can cause the formation of wave-cut platforms
• Depositional landforms occur at low-energy coastlines when the waves do not have enough energy to carry a large sediment load
• Deposition leads to the formation of a range of coastal features and landforms including:

  • Beaches
  • Spits
  • Tombolos
  • Bars or barrier beaches
  • Salt marshes
  • Sand dunes