Glossary: The Coastal Zone

Question 1

Arch.

Answer 1

A headland that has been partly broken through by the sea to form a thin-roofed arch.

Question 2

Attrition.

Answer 2

The knocking together of pebbles making them gradually smaller and smoother.

Question 3

Backwash.

Answer 3

The backward movement of water down a beach when a wave has broken.

Question 4

Bar.

Answer 4

A spit that has grown across bay trapping a freshwater lake or lagoon behind it.

Question 5

Bay.

Answer 5

A broad coastal inlet often with a bay.

Question 6

Beach.

Answer 6

A deposit of sand or shingle at the coast, often found at the head of a bay.

Question 7

Beach depletion.

Answer 7

The loss of beach material e.g. By offshore dredging of shingle banks.

Question 8

Cave.

Answer 8

A hollowed out feature at the case of an eroding cliff.

Question 9

Constructive wave.

Answer 9

A powerful wave with a strong swash that surges up a beach.

Question 10

Corrasion.

Answer 10

The effect of rocks being flung at the cliff by powerful waves.

Question 11

Crest.

Answer 11

The top of a wave.

Question 12

Abrasion.

Answer 12

The ‘sand papering’ effect of pebbles grinding over a rocky platform, often causing it to become smooth.

Question 13

Destructive wave.

Answer 13

A wave formed by a local storm that crashes down onto a beach and has a powerful backwash.

Question 14

Fetch.

Answer 14

The distance of open water over which the wind can blow.

Question 15

Hard engineering.

Answer 15

Building artificial structures such as sea walls, aimed at controlling natural processes.

Question 16

Headland.

Answer 16

A promontory of land jutting out into the sea.

Question 17

Hydraulic power.

Answer 17

The sheer power of waves.

Question 18

Longshore drift.

Answer 18

The transport of sediment ALONG a stretch of coastline, caused by the waves approaching the beach at the same angle as the prevailing wind.

Question 19

Managed retreat.

Answer 19

Allowing the controlled flooding of low-lying coastal areas or cliff collapse to occur in areas where the value of the land is low.

Question 20

Marine/coastal erosion.

Answer 20

The wearing away of land and the removal of beach or dune sediments by waves and tides.

Question 21

Mass movement.

Answer 21

The downhill movement of material under the influence of gravity.

Question 22

Pioneer plant.

Answer 22

The first plant species to colonise an area that is well adapted to living in a harsh environment.

Question 23

Prevailing Wind.

Answer 23

Winds that blow predominately from a single direction.

Question 24

Rockfall.

Answer 24

The collapse of a cliff face it the fall of individual rocks from a cliff.

Question 25

Saltation.

Answer 25

A hopping movement of pebbles along the seabed.

Question 26

Salt Marsh.

Answer 26

A low-lying coastal wetland mostly extending between high and low tide.

Question 27

Shoreline Management Plan.

(SMP)

Answer 27

An integrated coastal management plan for a stretch of coastline in England and Wales.

Question 28

Soft engineering.

Answer 28

A sustainable approach to managing the coast without using artificial structures.

Question 29

Solution (erosion).

Answer 29

The dissolving of rocks,such as limestone and chalk.

Question 30

Solution (transportation).

Answer 30

The transport of dissolved chemicals.

Question 31

Spit

Answer 31

A finger of new land made of sand or shingle jutting out into the sea from the coast.

Question 32

Stack.

Answer 32

An isolated pinnacle of rock sticking out of the sea.

Question 33

Stump.

Answer 33

An eroded stack, exposed only at low tide and covered with water at high tide.

Question 34

Suspension.

Answer 34

Lighter particles are carried within the water.

Question 35

Swash.

Answer 35

The forward movement of a wave up a beach.

Question 36

Traction.

Answer 36

Heavy particles are carried along the seabed.

Question 37

Vegetation succession.

Answer 37

The sequence of vegetation colonising in an environment.

Question 38

Wave-cut notch.

Answer 38

A small indentation (or notch) cut into a cliff roughly at the level of high tide, caused by concentrated marine erosion at this level.

Question 39

Wave-cut platform.

Answer 39

A wide, gently sloping rocky surface at the foot of a cliff.

Question 40

Weathering.

Answer 40

The disintegration or decay of rocks in their original place (in situ) at or close to the ground surface.