Explain the importance of vegetation in stabilising coastal landscapes Flashcards
REVISE MY VEGETATION CARDS
Vegetation also stabilises low energy coastlines because they can help reduce …………
wave speeds when in water which in return reduces the erosive power of the wave e.g. mangroves, their roots help to dissipate wave energy slowing them down and hence providing stability and also encouraging deposition as the slower the wave the less energy they have to carry sediment.
Vegetation can allow flocculation which is the binding of sediment together in bigger clusters making them
stay put as they become heavier and harder to be shifted by wind or water.
Example of sand dunes
Sand dunes (such as those on Camber Sands Beach, East Sussex) stabilise loose sand for pioneer species to colonise. The well-established root network of marram grass accumulates material, making the sandy coastline less susceptible to erosional forces and wind moving sediment.
