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Geography Edexcel A- level > Topic 2: Coastal landscapes and changes > Flashcards

Topic 2: Coastal landscapes and changes Flashcards

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1
Q

How long is UK coastline? With all of main islands included

A

31,368 km

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2
Q

What rock type does Cornwall consist of?

A

Hard rock - igneous (granite), metamorphic (slate) and old, compact sedimentary (old red sandstone)

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3
Q

What are the coastlines of high energy and low energy like?

A

High energy: e.g. Cornwall
1. powerful waves (carry a lot of sediment)
2. rate of erosion exceeds rate of disposition
3. Erosional landforms

Low energy: e.g. northumberland
1. waves are less powerful or coastline is sheltered
2. rate of deposition exceeds rate of erosion
3. Depositional landforms

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4
Q

What is a coastal plain?

A

Low, flat relief

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5
Q

What is an example of a coastal plain?

A

The Wash - largest estuary system in the uk (mud flats, salt marshes, lagoons)

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6
Q

When might a coastline change from low energy to high energy?

A

Winter storms can create a short-term high-energy erosional environment

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7
Q

What is the coast?
hint = think Chemistry

A

System - with inputs, processes and outputs e.g. waves, marine erosion, erosional landforms

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8
Q

What is a littoral zone?

A

boundary between the land and sea - constantly changing position due to dynamic interactions

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9
Q

What are 3 short term factors affecting the littoral zone?

A
  1. individual waves
  2. seasonal storms
  3. daily tides
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10
Q

What are 2 long term factors affecting the littoral zone?

A
  1. Sea level change (eustatic and isostatic)
  2. climate change
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11
Q

What does a sediment cell consist of of?
Give one local example

A

The source (sediment comes from 2 different directions), transport and the sinks (e.g. dolphin bay)
E.g. Christchurch Bay

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12
Q

how can coasts be classified?
3 ways

A
  1. Geology
  2. Level of energy/ balance between erosion and deposition
  3. Changes in sea level
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13
Q

What is the Lulworth Crumple?

A

tectonic movements changing geology of an area - layers of Purbeck limestone were folded

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14
Q

What is Lithology and geological structure?

A

Lithology = rock type
Geological structure = how rock is laid out/ faults, bed planes etc

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15
Q

What are the 6 types of geological structure?

A

Bed planes - horizontal cracks
Fault - stress or pressure to which a rock is subjected exceeds its internal strength (causing it to fracture)
Joints - vertical cracks
Folds - pressure during tectonic activity
Strata - layers of rock
Dip - refers to angle at which strata lie
Striations - deep scratches in rock caused by movement of glaciers

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16
Q

How does geology affect cliff profiles?

A

Lithology - impermeable rocks, permeable rocks, porous rocks, igneous, metamorphic, sedimentary, unconsolidated material

Geology - alternating strata, discordant and concordant coastlines,

All affects the rate at which codes erode and recede

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17
Q

What other factors affect cliff profiles?

A
  1. wave action and marine processes
  2. weathering (B, C, P)
  3. high or Lowe energy coastlines - time of year, winter seasonal storms
  4. Mass movement
  5. sea level change
    6 Human activity
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18
Q

What are concordant coasts and give an example?

A

Rock bands lie parallel to the coastline. E.g. Purbeck Southern coast (Lulworth cove)
Formation of coves

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19
Q

What are Dalmatian coasts and give an example?

A

Form as a result of rising sea levels
Valleys flood and ridges remain above the surface - creates a series of offshore islands parallel to the coast

e.g. in Croatia

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20
Q

What are Haff coasts and give an example?

A

Long spits of sand form parallel to the coastline - this creates lagoons behind the spits

e.g. Baltic Sea

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21
Q

What are Discordant coasts and give an example?

A

Rock bands lie perpendicular to the coastline - this creates headlands (where resistant rock like limestone is not eroded) and bays (where less resistant rocks like clay and unconsolidated material are eroded)
Headland e.g. Perevril point (erosion)
Bay e.g. Studland bay (deposition)

E.g. Eastern coast of Purbeck

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22
Q

How do most waves form?

A

When wind blows over water

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23
Q

What 3 things affect the power of a wave?

A

Wave height
Wave speed
Wave fetch e.g. Swell waves (originate mid-ocean so have a very large fetch)

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24
Q

What are the characteristics of a constructive wave and where can they be found? (season and type of coastline)

A

Low - surging waves with a long wavelength
Strong swash, weak backwash
Beach gain (constructive)
Summer - low energy coastline

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25
What are the characteristics of a destructive wave and where can they be found? (season and type of coastline)
High, plunging waves - with a short wavelength Weak swash, strong backwash Beach loss (destructive) Winter - high energy coastline
26
How do constructive waves build up a beach?
Swash of a constructive wave deposits larger material at the top of the beach - creating a berm
27
How do destructive waves erode a beach?
Berms are eroded by plunging waves and high energy swash - strong backwash transports sediment off shore RIP current - offshore bar
28
How do waves erode a cliff (2 ways) and then further erode sediment in the ocean (2 ways)?
Hydraulic action Abrasion Attrition Corrosion
29
What are 3 landforms created by marine erosion?
1. Wave cut notches and shoreline platforms 2. Cliffs 3. Caves, arches, stacks and stumps
30
How do wave cut notches form?
1. HA attacks joint in rock - wave cut notch forms 2. marine erosion processes increase wave cut notch - rock above is undercut and becomes unstable (collapses) 3. Process repeats until smooth shoreline platform forms
31
How do cliff form?
Steepest are where rock is resistant and strata is vertical Slopest are where rock is less resistant and strata is sloped away from coast
32
How does the sequence from caves to stumps form?
1. HA and abrasion turn joint into cave 2. eventually breaks through headland so form arch 3. unstable rock above collapses to form stack 4. eroded into stump
33
What is another name for LSD?
Lateral shift
34
Where is being eroded rapidly?
Benin - in West Africa
35
What are coastal depositional landforms?
1 Spits 2 Different types of beaches 3 Offshore bars 4 Barrier beaches 5 Tombolos 6 Cuspate forelands
36
How does a spit form?
Sediment builds up across estuary mouth - curved spit end Water deposits its sediment when slowed down e.g. Poole Harbour
37
How do different types of beaches form?
Sand vs shingle Swash aligned - sediment moves up and down beach Drift aligned beach - sediment moves along beach left to right
38
How do offshore bars form?
destructive waves erode sediment from a beach and deposit in an offshore bar
39
How does barrier beaches form?
When a beach or spit joins 2 headlands - forms a lagoon behind
40
How do Tombolos form?
A beach that has formed between the a small island and the mainland
41
How do cuspate forelands form?
A coast is exposed to LSD from opposite directions - sediment is deposited at the point where 2 meet. Vegetation begins to grow on sediment which stabilises the landform
42
What are 2 examples of stabilising landforms?
1. Salt marshes 2. Sand dunes
43
How do sand dunes work?
1. Embryo - 2. Fore Dunes - yellow dune and grey dune (more humus) 3. Woodland
44
What plants are common?
Pioneer plants - first plants (die and nutrients allow other plants to grow) Marram grass - very resistant
45
Why do plants change further in land? 3 reasons
1. More humus - organic matter in soil that results from decomposition of plant and animal matter 2. Higher water table - more water available (not salty water) 3. More sheltered, less windy
46
What is sediment budget? What happens when it rises and falls?
Amount of sediment in a sediment cell Changes result in more erosion or deposition (depending on energy of waves/sea) Reaches dynamic equilibrium
47
What are sub-aerial processes?
Weathering - mechanical, biological and chemical Mass movement - slumps, soil creep, solifluction
48
What is weathering and what are the different types?
Weathering is the breakdown of rock in Situ. Mechanical - freeze-thaw (water freezes in cracks and causes increase in pressure, eventually fractures and b breaks off rock) Chemical - acid rain on limestone Biological - roots, burrowing
49
Why does mass movement occur? 4 reasons
1. Angle of strata 2. rock type 3. vegetation 4. saturation
50
What is soil creep?
Slow (1cm a year) movement of soil particles downhill
51
What is solifluction?
Common on tundra - top layer of froze ground unfreezes (becomes saturated), moves downhill over permanent frost
52
What are rock falls?
Fast movement of rocks downhill after being broken off on steep cliff
53
What are slumps?
When ground is saturated, rotational movement of softer rock downhill (onto of resistant rocks)
54
Why are sea levels rising?
Thermal expansion Melting of ice on land
55
What's happening in Kiribati?
Kiribati nation consists of 33 spaced out islands - low-lying and mangroves Majority of islands will be submerged in the next 50 years Will lead to climate refugees
56
What is eustatic change?
When the sea level rises or falls (global sea change)
57
What is isostatic change?
When land rises or falls relative to the sea (local sea level change) Isostatic recovery Isostatic subsidence
58
What are 2 types of isostatic change in the UK?
Land in the north is rising due to isostatic recovery - glaciers have melted Land in south is sinking - water from melted glaciers saturates and adds weight to the land (face flood risks)
59
How does tectonic activity affect sea level?
Can change sea level e.g. some parts of Banda Aceh were permanently affected by Indian Boxing Day earthquake/ tsunami (tsunami flooded parts and plates shifted and sunk)
60
How does changing sea level affect the coast line?
creates emergent and submerging coastlines
61
What are 2 landforms caused by a fall in sea level?
1. Raised beaches - shoreline platforms 2. Relic cliffs
62
What are 3 landforms caused by a rise in sea level?
1. Rias - e.g. Kingsbridge estuary (valleys in a dissected upland area are flooded) 2. Dalmation coasts - Croatia (concodrant coastline valleys and ridges flood) 3. Fjords - New Zealand (deep glacial troughs are flooded)
63
Why do rates of coastal erosion vary?
1. Geology 2. Fetch 3. LSD and beach material
64
How does geology affect erosion at Holderness?
Holderness coast is boulder clay/ glacial till - little resistance to erosion Chalk band surrounds boulder clay - headlands at Flamborough Head
65
How does fetch affect erosion at Holderness?
Winds and waves from the North- East and North Sea Currents generate destructive waves Low- pressure weather systems Small seas create huge waves in storms Seafloor is relatively deep
66
How does LSD affect erosion at Holderness?
Narrow beaches transports sand south by LSD
67
Who has a say at Holderness?
Central GOV Local GOV Stakeholders in local economy Environmental stakeholder
68
What is the impact of coastal management at holderness?
Strong protection at Hornsea TGS affects Mappleton
69
How is Holderness suffering due to coastal management?
Withernsea is suffering economic losses No compensation for lost property or land to erosion (often insurance companies won't insure area at high risk)
70
How has this impact been lessened?
East Riding of Yorkshire council has helped
71
How is Bangladesh at risk from flooding? 3 reasons
1 World's most densely populated country 2 Almost 50% of pop lives less than 10m above sea level 3 Floodplain of 3 major rivers
72
How does subsidence increase risk of flooding in B?
Clearance and drainage of land for rice farming and cultivation, together with the building of large embankments, has caused some estuarine islands to shrink and subside
73
How has removing vegetation increased risk of flooding in B?
Sundarbans mangrove forest is being cleared for land for farming Globally, half of all mangrove have been lost since the start of the mid-twentieth century
74
Why are mangroves good?
Good for biodiversity Deep roots that stabilise the ground Protection and shelter against extreme weather events
75
Cyclone Sidr stats
2007 Storm surge reached up to 6m high Category 4 storm
76
What were the impacts of cyclone Sidr?
1. Breached embankments 2. Damage housing, roads etc 3. Electricity supplies and communications were damaged 4. Drinking water was contaminated by salt and debris 5. total cost = $1.7 billion 6. 10,000 died

Geography Edexcel A- level (4 decks)

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