Coasts Case Study

Question 1

Where is Holderness Coastline?

Answer 1

East Yorkshire

Question 2

Outline the topography of Holderness (length and composition)

Answer 2

61 km long (Flamborough to Spurn Head)
Most cliffs are made of till (‘boulder clay’)
North sea = destructive waves during storms

Question 3

Outline the erosion occurring on Holderness

Answer 3

Bolder clay (soft) -> eroded by wave action
Great Cowden = 10m/year

Question 4

Outline the transportation occurring on Holderness

Answer 4

Prevailing winds (NE) transports mats southward. Winds also make ocean current = longshore drift

Question 5

Outline the deposition occurring on Holderness

Answer 5

Ocean current meets outflow of Humber River -> turbulence = deposition

Question 6

Outline the headlands and wave-cut platforms on Holderness

Answer 6

North - boulder clay overlies chalk (eroded less) = headland
Sewerby wave-cut platform - stacks, stumps arches

Question 7

Outline the beaches on Holderness

Answer 7

Wide sand & pebble beaches south of Flamborough Head

Question 8

Outline the Spit from Holderness

Answer 8

Erosion + LSD = Recurved spit at mouth of Humber Estuary
Mudflats + saltmarshes

Question 9

Outline how much erosion has occurred to Holderness over the past 200 years

Answer 9

Retreated by 4km - 30 villages lost

Question 10

Outline 2 impacts of the Holderness erosion

Answer 10

1. Skipsea at risk & 80,000m^2 farmland lost each year
2. Gas terminal Easington 25m from cliff edge

Question 11

How much of Holderness coastline is protected by hard engineering

Answer 11

11.4km of the 61km coastline

Question 12

Outline 3 hard engineering management schemes that have been used in Holderness

Answer 12

1. 2 rock groynes + 500m revetment at Mappleton 1991
   £2mil protect village & B1242 rd
2. Bridlington protected by 4.7km long sea wall
3. Easington Gas Terminal protected by revetment

Question 13

Outline 3 reasons why the hard engineering in Holderness is unstable

Answer 13

1. Groynes trap sediment - increases cliff erosion down-drift (Cowden Farm, south Mappleton risk of falling)
2. Less sediment deposit into Humber Estuary = risk of flooding
3. Bays form between protected areas -> increased wave action on headlands = increased sea defence cost

Question 14

Outline 2 other strategies for the protection of Holderness

Answer 14

1. 1995 - Council ‘do nothing’ strategy for spurn head - saves money + natural spit function
2. Managed realignment - move businesses (caravan parks, etc) further back. Allows erosion but not always possible land to move to

Question 15

Outline the location and topography of Odisha

Answer 15

South-east coast of India
Straight coastline (480km), few natural harbours with bulk of state population

Question 16

Outline the prominent depositional landforms in Odisha

Answer 16

6 major deltas - known as ‘Hexadeltaic region’

Question 17

Outline the vegetation in Odisha

Answer 17

Wide range of marine flora & fauna (+ 1435km^2 of mangrove forest)

Question 18

Outline Chilika Lake in Odisha

Answer 18

Brackish salty lagoon with birdlife
Diluted in monsoon season from freshwater rainfall
-> larger
Temporary store in H2O cycle important for coastal system

Question 19

Outline 3 opportunities for human occupation and development in Odisha

Answer 19

1. Large fish stocks - helps local employment (e.g: shrimps)
2. Wildlife sanctuary = tourism boost (e.g: Chilika Lake Bird Sanctuary >150 bird species)
3. 35% coast stretch has sediment minerals & heavy metal deposits

Question 20

Outline 2 risks of human occupation and development in Odisha

Answer 20

1. 2011 - Assessment of Shoreline Change - 36.8% eroding & 14.4% stable from human & natural processes
2. Hard engineering -> shifts erosion downdrift south coast

Question 21

Outline the impact of the mangrove vegetation in Odisha from the 2011 Assessment of Shoreline Change

Answer 21

> 50% higher accretion in areas of mangroves (e.g: Bhadrak and Kendrapara)

Question 22

When and where did Cyclone Phailin occur in Odisha?

Answer 22

October 2013 Odisha coast near Gopalpur

Question 23

Outline the death toll and damages of Cyclone Phailin

Answer 23

44 Deaths
>1mil evacuated
500K ha crops destroyed
Cost = US$700K

Question 24

How did the Odisha population adapt to Cyclone Phailin?

Answer 24

Odisha Cyclone 1999 = >100k deaths
New strategies = relief supplies ahead of storm, practiced evacuations, broadcasted warnings = lower death No

Question 25

Outline 3 aims of the ICZM project of Odisha coastline management

Answer 25

1. Establish sustainable levels of economic & social activity 2. Protect the coastal environment 3. Resolve environmental, social and economic challenges

Question 26

Outline the mangrove replanting scheme of the Mahanadi Delta

Answer 26

50 yrs before - 5.1 km mangroves protecting Mahanadi Delta Now - average 1.2km ICZM project - help villagers cultivate & plant mangroves in Mahanadi. Soft engineering (sustainable)