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Geography > The Coastal Zone > Flashcards

The Coastal Zone Flashcards

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1
Q

What is weathering of rocks? What is it caused by?

A

The breakdown or decay of rocks in their original place at or close to the ground surface. It is largely caused by the elements of the weather e.g rainfall or temperature change

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2
Q

What is biological weathering? Example…

A

Weathering caused by plants and animals, e.g roots of trees can widen joints and burrowing animals can help brake down small pieces of rock

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3
Q

What is mechanical weathering?

A

It involves the break up of rocks without any chemical changes taking place , often results in large angular piles of rock fragments

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4
Q

What is chemical weathering?

A

When a rock’s mineral composition is changed leading to its disintegration

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5
Q

What is freeze-thaw?

A

Water in fissures in the rock turns to ice and expands pushing the rock away and breaking, this repeats, as the water thaws and then more fills up the gap and freezes, it then breaks off.

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6
Q

What is exfoliation? as a mechanical weathering process

A

The flaking away of the surface layer of rock caused by the repeated heating up and cooling down of the rock. In the cool the rock contracts and in the heat it expands causing the surface to flake.

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7
Q

What is salt crystallisation? as a mechanical weathering process

A

Salt water seeps into cracks and joints and as the water evaporates slat crystals are left behind. These expand when heated exerting pressure on the rock.

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8
Q

What is solution? as a chemical weathering process

A

The dissolving of minerals and rocks in rain water

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9
Q

What is mass movement?

A

The downhill movement of material under the influence of gravity

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10
Q

What is slumping?

  1. Where?
  2. What happens when there’s lots of water
  3. What does it look like after
A

It often occurs where softer materials such as clay and sand overlie more resistant impermeable rock.
Water can build up in the softer layer adding weight and causing it to slump.
Leaves a curved or stepped surface behind.

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11
Q

What is sliding?

  1. What happens
  2. When does it happen?
  3. What also helps?
A

Large amounts of rocky debris move downhill leaving a flat surface behind.
May occur after heavy rainfall and the surface material has become saturated
Wave action at the base of the cliff can also encourage the process

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12
Q 
Destructive Waves:
When are they created?
When do they occur?
Swash is:
Backwash
Wavelength
Wave height
Effect
Strength
Occurrence
A 
In storm conditions from big strong waves when the wind is powerful and has been blowing for a long time.
When wave energy is high and the wave has traveled over long fetch
Weak
Strong
Short
High
Erodes beach
Strong
10-15 times per minute - frequent
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13
Q 
Constructive Waves:
When are they created?
Swash is:
Backwash
Wavelength
Wave height
Effect
Strength
Occurrence
A 
In calm weather
Strong
Weak
Long
Short
Build the beach
Weak
6-9 times per minute - low frequency
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14
Q

What is the definition for hydraulic action?

A

Air may become trapped in joints and cracks on a cliff face. When a wave breaks, the trapped air is compressed which weakens the cliff and causes erosion.

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15
Q

What is the definition for abrasion?

A

Bits of rock and sand in waves grind down cliff surfaces like sandpaper.

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16
Q

What is the definition for attrition?

A

Waves smash rocks and pebbles on the shore into each other, and they break and become smoother.

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17
Q

What is the definition for solution?

A

Acids contained in sea water will dissolve some types of rock such as chalk or limestone.

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18
Q

What is long shore drift?

  1. Describe the diagram and all the arrows and parts
  2. Explain long shore drift
A
  1. Arrows travel to the right up the page at a 45 degree angle towards the sand strip on the diagram, it meats a vertical dotted line returning ti the level it started at, the direction of arrow 1 is the direction of the prevailing wind. Swash is arrow 1, backwash is the line.
  2. The prevailing wind controls the direction of the waves and moves them towards the beach at an angle. The swash moves diagonally forward carrying suspended particles, when it moves back perpendicular to the beach it carries particles back out. This transports the particles along the beach.
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19
Q

What is solution (transportation)?

A

Minerals are dissolved in the water, a chemical change

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20
Q

What is suspension (transportation)?

A

Fine light material is carried along by the ocean

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21
Q

What is saltation (transportation)?

A

Small pebbles and stones bounce along the sea bed

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22
Q

What is traction (transportation)?

A

Large boulders and rocks are rolled along the sea bed.

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23
Q

What are the 4 causes for deposition?

A

Loss of energy as the water flows into the sea, the sediment is dropped as a delta.
Shallow water, loses energy due to increased friction
Mass movement deposits lots of sediment into the sea, too much for the cliff to support
Long shore drift lift and drops sediment elsewhere

24
Q

How are wave cut platforms formed? (6)

A

Destructive waves attack the bottom if cliffs betewen high tide and low tide levels
This forms a wave cut notch
The rick above the overhang eventually collapses forming a steep cliff
This continues and the cliff moves further and further back creating a wave cut platform where the cliff was
The cliff gets steeper
Abrasion from the collapsed rock against the platform erodes the base of the cliff and waves eventually are unable to break and erode as they can’t reach the cliff so It reaches a maximum size.

25
Q

How is a cave formed? (4)

A

Hydraulic action attacks the headland, as the waves refract they exert energy on the side of the cliff
Cracks and weakness in the rocks expand and are broken apart by hydraulic action.
Geos are formed and hydraulic action erodes further to make a cave.
The collapsed rock continues to erode the ave deeper

26
Q

How are arches formed? (1)

After a cave is formed

A

The cave wall finally breaks down due to abrasion and hydraulic action forming an arch

27
Q

How are stacks and stumps made? (4)

A

The arch collapses due to gravity and the platform being too weak to support its own weight.
The joints become weak due to weathering and the arch collapses into the sea.
The rock in the water is washed around the stacks, pillars, left over from the arch and this erodes to eventually form a stump.
Undercutting and weathering erodes the stacks into stumps

28
Q

Describe and explain the formation of beaches:
What are they made of?
How are they built?
Where are they built?
Sandy beaches have what profile? And pebbly beaches?

A

Eroded material that has been transported from else where and deposited by the sea, (long shore drift) from a source of sediment, e.g collapsing cliffs
Constructive waves deposit heavy material by the cliffs of the beach in a high energy storm, but usually by low energy waves deposit the lighter material close to the water.
In sheltered areas, bays between headlands
Gently sloping, steeper.

29
Q

Describe and explain the primary formation of spits:

  1. Wind
  2. Where does deposition happen? and why?
  3. What happens?
  4. What happens when what wind/waves happen?
A
  1. The southwest prevailing wind means material is carried eastwards by long shore drift
  2. Where the coastline changes direction sand and shingle are deposited in water sheltered by the headland.
  3. Material builds upwards and outwards forming a spit
  4. If waves approach the land from the south east then some material will be pushed inland causing the end of the spit to curve
30
Q

Describe and explain the rest of the formation of spits:

  1. After the main spit has been formed and curved the …
  2. What else forms now?
  3. Where the is an estuary …..
A
  1. … wind returns to the original direction and and the spit continues to grow eastward.
  2. Further hooked ends develop when the wind changes direction
  3. The spit cannot grow across due to the speed of the river carrying material out to sea.
31
Q

What is a bar?

A

A ridge of sand and shingle which has joined two headlands cutting off a bay

32
Q

How is a bar and lagoon formed? (3)

A
  1. A spit grows across a bay and closes of the water behind as there is no estuary.
  2. Behind the bar a lagoon is created where water has been trapped
  3. Salt marshes can develop ad overtime the lagoon is infilled by deposition
33
Q

Why are there rising sea levels?

A

The melting glaciers and ice sheets on land raise the sea level
Also thermal expansion of the sea causes it too rise and the sea absorbs more heat from the atmosphere.

34
Q

What are the social impacts of coastal flooding?

A

Houses will be damaged or destroyed - communities will become homeless
People will have to move away from their towns as their settlements go under water

35
Q

What are the economic impacts of coastal flooding?

A

Loss of business and industry, for example in the Maldives, tourism provides 28% of the GDP.
Tourism will be ruined as attractions will be flooded.

36
Q

What are the environmental impacts of coastal flooding?

A

Loss of beaches and habitats, and the in land habitats will be drowned.
Loss of soil on the Maldives as the waves will easily wash away the thin deposited layer.

37
Q

What are the political impacts of coastal flooding?

A

It promotes public awareness for global warming and the need to be carbon neutral (Maldives)
Long term plans change as countries spend money on defenses or relocation, the Maldives are looking to buy land in Australia.

38
Q

How are headlands and bays formed?

  1. What are headlands made of?
  2. So where do they form?
  3. So how is the bay formed?
  4. How are the headlands formed?
A
  1. Resistant rock
  2. Where there are alternating bands of hard and soft rock perpendicular to the coastline
  3. The less resistant rock (clay) is eroded quickly to form a bay (bays have gentle slopes)
  4. The resistant rock (chalk) is eroded more slowly and is left jutting out forming a headland, these have steep sides.
39
Q

Where is there ongoing cliff collapse and erosion?
What is the average rate of erosion?
How long is it and where does it stretch from and to?

A

The Holderness coastline
1.8 meters per year
61km long from Flamborough Head to the Spurn Head spit

40
Q

Why is there rapid erosion at the Holderness Coastline? (3)
Rock
Beaches
Place

A

Easily eroded rock type (boulder clay) - likely to slump when wet causing the cliffs to collapse
Naturally narrow beaches so there’s less beach to slow down the wave and absorb its energy giving the cliffs less protection
Powerful waves, it faces the prevailing wind which brings waves from the north east, the waves increase in power of the long fetch so the coast is battered by the waves.

41
Q

How have people worsened the erosion on the Holderness coastline?
What has made it worse, where and how?
What place is effected?
What are the erosion rates now?

A

Coastal defenses such as groynes have been placed at Mappleton. These stop long shore drift so less sediment has collected south at Great Cowden thinning the beach and increasing the erosion of the cliffs to 10m per year

42
Q 
What are the social impacts of bad erosion on the Holderness coastline? (4)
Homes
Prices
Cars
Farms
A

Homes near the sea are at risk of collapsing into the sea (Skipsea)
Property prices have fallen dramatically as the houses are at risk
Accessibility has been affected as roads near cliff tops are unstable and at risk of collapse
80,000m squared of farmland is lost each year having a large impact on farmers’ livelihoods

43
Q

What are the environmental impacts of bad erosion on the Holderness coastline? (2)

A 
Some SSSIs (Sites of special scientific interest) are threatened - Lagoons near Easington
Land is eroded where animals burrow and live on
44
Q 
Sea Walls
What is it?
How much does it cost?
Benefit?
Disadvantage?
A

A wall made of a hard material like concrete that reflects the waves back to sea
£6 million per km
Prevents erosion of the coast and acts as a barrier to prevent flooding
Creates a strong backwash which erodes under the wall and is expensive to build and maintain.

45
Q 
Rock armour
What is it?
How much does it cost?
Benefit?
Disadvantage?
A

Boulders that are piled up along the coast
£4000 per meter - cheap
Absorbs energy so reduces erosion and flooding
They can be moved by strong waves so will need replacing

46
Q 
Groynes
What is it?
How much does it cost?
Benefit?
Disadvantage?
A

Wooden or stone fences built perpendicular to the coastline, trapping material transported by long shore drift
£10-15,000 each - cheap
Create wider beaches, slowing waves, absorbing energy
Starve beaches further down of sediment making them susceptible to erosion.

47
Q 
Beach nourishment
What is it?
How much does it cost?
Benefit?
Disadvantage?
A

Sand and shingle from else where is added to beaches
£3000 per meter
Create wider beaches, slowing waves, absorbing energy
Taking sediment from the sea bed kills organisms like sponges and corals.

48
Q 
Managed retreat
What is it?
How expensive is it?
Benefit?
Disadvantage?
A

Removing an existing defense and allowing the land behind it to flood
Cheap, £5000 to £10,000 depending on the quality of the land
Over time the land becomes marshland creating new habitats, whilst flooding behind the marsh decreases
People will disagree over what land is allowed to flood

49
Q 
Dune regeneration
What is it?
How much does it cost?
Benefit?
Disadvantage?
A

Creating or restoring sand dunes by nourishment or planting vegetation to stabilise the sand
£2000 per 100m
Wave energy is absorbed by the sand creating an effective barrier
The protection is limited to a small area and nourishment is very expensive although the vegetation is cheap

50
Q 
Marsh creation
What is it?
How expensive is it?
Benefit?
Disadvantage?
A

Planting vegetation in mudflats along the coast
Expensive
New habitats for organisms and the plants stabilise the flats so they reduce wave speed.
Not useful where there are high erosion rates as it won’t have time to grow and strengthen

51
Q

What has been placed at Hornsea as coastal management? and Mappleton?

A

A sea wall, wooden groynes and rock armour to protect the village from flooding and erosion.
Two rock groynes and 1991 that cost £2 million to protect the village and coastal road from erosion and flooding

52
Q

What are the problems caused by the coastal management at Hornsea and Mappleton?
GC
SH
Bays and Headlands

A

Caused narrow beaches further down so Great Cowden now has an erosion rate of 10 m per year
Spurn Head is at risk of being eroded away as less material is added to it
Bays are forming between the protected areas so the protected areas are becoming headlands that are eroded more heavily so maintaining defenses is becoming more expensive

53
Q

What is the name of the coastal habitat case study?

A

Key Haven Marshes

54
Q

How is a salt marsh formed?

A

It is an accumulation of mud and silt in a sheltered area typically behind a spit, where as more deposition takes place the mud breaks the surface of the water and mudflats are formed where plants grow.

55
Q 
What organism is it and why or where does it live on the Key Haven Marshes?
Plants:
Butterflies:
Birds:
Bugs:
A

Cord Grass - colonises the mudflats quickly as they are salt tolerant and have long roots for stability
Common Blue Butterfly - it’s found on higher marshes
Oyster Catchers - Feed and rest on slat marshes
Wolf spiders - cling for hours to submerged cord grass waiting for low tide to then feed

56
Q 
What methods are being used to manage the risks at the Key Haven Marshes sustainably? 
Risk, strategy. (4)
1.Storms, engineering 
2. Plants, tracks
3. Cars, management
4. Boats, Lists
A
  1. Salt marshes under threat due to the Hurst Castle spit being broken by large storms - £5 million on rock armour around the spit and beach nourishment to make it bigger
  2. Rare plant species are at risk of trampling by tourists - designated footpaths to keep people away from protected areas
  3. Pollution puts rich biodiversity at risk - motoring is strictly controlled as it’s an SSSI and nature reserve
  4. Key Haven estuaries are popular for mooring boats - long waiting list and an annual license fee and restrictions on which boats can moore
57
Q

What is cliff collapse? (2 marks) (where and called what?)

Explain why cliffs collapse: (3 reasons)

A

It occurs when a steep slopes fall into the sea or the beach below. Unstable cliffs may slump slide or give way - (real exam answer, June 2014)
Wave cut notches and overhangs due to the sea
Human influence, groynes
Rain, making the cliffs unstable

Geography (6 decks)

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