Coastal processes on the holderness coast

Question 1

Where is Holderness?

Answer 1

In eastern England

Question 2

What three distinct units does Holdnerness have?

Answer 2

• Flambourough head in the north, a chalk promontory that exhibits many typical landforms associated with coastal erosion
• Bridlington bay to spurn head, an extensive zone of erosion and sediment transfer characterised by a very rapid rate of cliff retreat
• spurn head, a classic spit formed at the estuary of the river humber

Question 3

Within Holderness, what is the main inut?

Answer 3

• erosion of the weak and unconsolidated till cliffs. Some of the finer sediment is washed offshore to form an output from the system while the slightly coarser material is moved southwards as a transfer inc. longshore drift
• some sediment is deposited to form spurn head, while a significant amount continues south towards the wash and East Anglia

Question 4

What factors affect the coastal system in Holderness?

Answer 4

• Geology
• The last Glacial period
• Wind
• Powerful waves
• Longshore drift
• Hard-engineering
• Lack of a beach

Question 5

How is geology an important factor in affecting the process of landform’s of the Holderness coast?

Answer 5

-Chalk, a relatively resistant rock, forms a broad arc in the region, stretching from Lincolnshire wolds in the south to Flambourough head

Question 6

How is the last Glacial period an important factor in affecting the process of landform’s of the Holderness coast?

Answer 6

• as sea levels rose at the end of the last glacial period, the North Sea took shape and started to erode thick till deposits to form the present day cliffs
• the great sweep of present day coastal zone is a result of sediment being carried and dumped by ice sheets, originating from Scandinava moving the coastline

Question 7

How is the wind an important factor in affecting the process of landform’s of the Holderness coast?

Answer 7

-when the wind is blowing from the north-east (direction of the greatest fetch) it can drive powerful waves towards the Holderness coast . Occasionally areas of extremely low pressure move down the North Sea, funnelling water and creating storm surges several metres high

Question 8

Where is the direction of the greatest fetch in Holderness?

Answer 8

The north-east

Question 9

Give an example of low-frequency and high magnitude events lead to significant erosion and flooding?

Answer 9

In 1953 more than 300 people lost their lives along the east coast of England as a consequence

Question 10

What is the direction of LSD in Holderness?

Answer 10

North-South

Question 11

What has Holderness done in response to the rapid rates of erosion?

Answer 11

• parts of the coastline have been protected with hard engineering structures such as sea walls, rock armour, and groynes
• although these interventions have helped to protect specific localities such as Hornsea and Mappleton, they have deprived areas further south of sediment , thereby exacerbating coastal erosion

Question 12

What are the consequences of the lack of a beach at Holderness?

Answer 12

It renders the cliff much more vulnerable to undercutting and collapse

Question 13

Bridlington bay to spurn head: what are the rates of erosion here?

Answer 13

• in excess of 1m per year
• up to 10m per year in other places
• the Holdnerness coast has one of the most rapid rates of Erosion in Europe

Question 14

Bridlington bay to spurn head: what are the advantages of erosion?

Answer 14

• it creates a vast amount of sediment that feeds the sediment cell
• much of the finer sediment is carried offshore but a great deal of coarse sediment is transferred by LSD to the South, building up the beaches and reducing erosion (a negative feedback for the system)

Question 15

Bridlington bay to spurn head: state an important area that is nourished by the sediment transfer to the south

Answer 15

Spurn head

Question 16

Bridlington bay to spurn head: State the importance of Spurn head

Answer 16

• it plays an important role in protecting the towns and land bordering the river humber from the effects of storm waves and dlooding
• further south, the Wash is an important sediment sink, protecting towns such as kings Lynn

Question 17

Spurn head: what does it represent?

Answer 17

-a temporary sediment store/ sink

Question 18

Spurn head: How was spurn head formed?

Answer 18

• much of the material that forms the spit is derived from the Holderness coast and transferred south by LSD
• on reaching the river Humber estuary the deposited sediment grows out to form a narrow finger of new land, it has a curved tip resulting primarily from direct wave action

Question 19

Spurn head: When was spurn head formed?

Answer 19

-some 8000 years ago at the end of the last Glacial period

Question 20

Spurn head: Why is Spurn head called a temporary store?

Answer 20

-because it is extremely narrow for much of its length and has frequently been breached and destroyed by major storms

Question 21

Spurn head: Following a massive breach in 1849, what was done?

Answer 21

-groynes and revetments were erected to stabilise the spit

Question 22

Spurn head: Describe the changes in coastal management at spurn head

Answer 22

• when military forts were established at spurn point, the royal Engineers took over the task of maintaining coastal defences
• In the 1950’s the military left and in 1960 the spit was brought by the Yorkshire Naturalist’s trust. Unable to afford the maintenance costs od the spit, the trust had to allow some of the sea defences to fall into disrepair. When the largest tidal surge hit spurn point in 2013, the defences could not cope-buildings were destroyed and the access road swept away