Coastal Environment Local Scale - Slapton Sands

Question 1

What is marine transgression?

Answer 1

Erosion during a time of lower sea levels creates material which is then “rolled” towards the coast as sea levels rise (35km out to sea at Slapton)
The material ends up trapped against the current coastline when sea levels reach their current height

Question 2

What has marine transgression created at slapton?

Answer 2

Created a barrier beach (called slapton sands) with a lagoon behind (slapton Ley) as the material got stuck between two small headlands at Strete and Torcross

Question 3

What is the evidence for marine transgression at slapton?

Answer 3

There is lots of different rock types (of which arnt the normal ones on the beach at the front, and also couldn’t be the material from the river dart (tidal estuary)

Question 4

What is evidence of deposition at slapton?

Answer 4

Barrier beaches and bars (with lagoons behind)

Question 5

What is the evidence of wave refraction at slapton?

Answer 5

Energy focused on headland in the south, therefore loss of energy as head beyond the headland (lots of deposition occurs)

Question 6

What is evidence of erosion at slapton?

Answer 6

Stacks, stumps,wave cut platforms ext…

Question 7

What is evidence of LSD at slapton?

Answer 7

The north is bigger, more material

Question 8

Is the coastline high energy or low energy at this sediment cell?

Answer 8

Both!
- low energy between Blackpool stands and Hallsands (lots of deposition)
- high energy in the south (lots of erosion and erosional features)