Costal Zone Case Studies

Costal Zone Case Studies

1. Mass movement/landslides

   • Holbeck Hotel, Scarborough.
     • Landslide took place between 3rd and 5th June 1993.
     • Heavy rainfall leading up to the collapse turned the muddy cliff to sludge.
     • Landslide was blames on soil creep, not the sea, a common problem in Scarborough.

2. Coastal features

   • Stack
     • Old Harry off The Foreland headland, Swanage.
   • Spit
     • Spern Head
   • Arch
     • The London Bridge, Port Campbell, Victoria.

3. Flooding

   • East Anglia coastline.
     • Popular tourist destination: brings in £5m+.
     • Agriculture land at risk meaning no local food supply.
   • Managing flooding
     • Thames barrier, London.
       • Increased pressure is put on the Thames when connecting rivers flood.
       • The barrier costs millions of pounds to maintain so can only be used when necessary.
       • Since the 50's when it was built, the barrier has only been used 12 times.
       • It can only be closed at low tide and can take about and hour and a half to fully close.

4. Erosion

   • Holderness coastline.
     • Fastest eroding coastline in Europe.
       • 1-2 m per year.
     • Made of boulder clay.
     • Can be protected through hard and soft engineering methods.
       • Hard: concrete sea walls.
       • Soft: beach nourishment.