1 Coastal Systems Flashcards
Define the coast
The narrow zone where the sea and land overlap (an interface zone)
Interaction of terrestrial, atmospheric and marine processes and human intervention
Define a system
Set of inter-related components (stores) and processes (links) that are connected together to form a working unit or unified whole
Define input
Transfer of matter and/or energy from a neighbouring system
Define output
The loss of matter and/or energy to a neighbouring system
Define a store
Components (objects) within the system where energy and/or matter it stored, and which are connected by flows (processes)
Define a flow/transfer
The processes that link the stores within a systems
Define throughputs
The internal elements of a system (stores and flows)
Define an open system
Inputs/outputs of energy and matter across system boundaries
Define a closed system
A closed system with inputs and outputs of energy across the system boundaries but no input or outputs of matter
What are the terrestrial processes at the coast?
Geology
Rivers
Relief
Vegetation
What are the marine processes at the coast?
Waves
Storm surge
Tides
Current
Tsunamis
Sea level change
What are the atmospheric processes at the coast?
Change of atmospheric composition
Wind
Atmospheric pressure
Temperature
What are the human intervention processes at the coast?
Tourism
Trade
Fishing
Water Pollution
Transport
Coastal management
Leisure
Sand Extraction
Draw an open system
Energy input –> STORE Energy output
^ Transfer
Matter input –> STORE Matter output
Draw a closed system
Energy input –> STORE Energy output
^ Transfer
STORE
Draw an isolated system
STORE
^ Transfer
STORE
Define an isolated system
No inputs or outputs of energy or matter across the system boundaries
Define geomorphic
The shape of the land
Define dynamic equilibrium
When inputs and outputs are balanced
Define negative feedback
Changes are met with responses that redress the imbalance and lead the system back towards its original state (equilibrium)
Define positive feedback
A change occurs that causes the system to travel further from its original state, which in turn causes the change to occur more intensely, and so on
Define sediment cell
A stretch of coastline where the sediment staying in the closed system
11 around England and Wales
Boundaries of sediment cells are determined by the topography and shape of the coastline - large physical features act as huge natural barriers that prevent the transfer of sediment to adjacent cells
How do sediment cells affect coastal management?
Have important implications for coastal management
Activities will have a knock-on impact on other locations in the cell
What is surplus?
Input > Output
What is deficit?
Inputs < Outputs
What is equilibrium?
Inputs = Outputs
What is the energy available to a coast system?
Thermal, kinetic or potential
What are examples of inputs?
Kinetic energy from wind and waves, thermal energy from the heat of the Sun and potential energy from the position of material on slopes; material from marine deposition, weathering and mass movement from cliffs
What are examples of outputs?
Marine and wind erosion from beaches and rock surfaces; evaporation
What are examples of throughputs?
Stores, including beach and nearshore sediment accumulations; and flows (transfers), such as the movement of sediment along a beach by longshore drift
Why can a sediment cell be regarded as a closed system and a open system?
Closed system:
No sediment is transferred from one cell
Large physical features act as huge natural barriers that prevent the transfer of sediment to adjacent cells
Open system:
Variations in wind direction and tidal currents some sediment is transferred
