Chapter

Clickers
Chapter110
Lecture

Essentials of Oceanography
Eleventh Edition

The Coast:
Beaches and
Shoreline Processes

Alan P. Trujillo
Harold V. Thurman

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Chapter Overview

Coastal regions have distinct coastal features.

The beach is a dominant coastal feature.
Waves affect deposition and erosion of sand.
Sea level changes affect the coast.
Different coasts have different characteristics.
Humans have attempted various coastal
stabilization measures.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Defining Coastal Regions

General Features
Shore the zone that lies between the low tide
line and the highest area on land affected by
storm waves
Coast extends inland as far as ocean related
features are found
Coastline boundary between shore and coast

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Defining Coastal Regions

Backshore part of shore above high tide
shoreline
Foreshore part of shore exposed at low tide
and submerged at high tide
Shoreline waters edge that migrates with
the tide

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Defining Coastal Regions

Nearshore extends seaward from low tide
shoreline to low tide breaker line
Offshore zone beyond low tide breakers
Beach wave-worked sediment deposit of
the shore area
Area of beach above shoreline often called
the recreational beach

Wave-cut bench flat, wave-eroded surface

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Defining Coastal Regions

Berm dry, gently sloping, elevated beach
margin at the foot of coastal cliffs or sand dunes
Beach face wet, sloping surface extending
from berm to shoreline
Also called low tide terrace

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Defining Coastal Regions

Longshore bars sand bars parallel to coast
May not always be present
Can cause approaching waves to break

Longshore trough separates longshore bar

from beach face

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Cliffed Coastal Region

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Composition of Beaches
Formed from locally available material
May be coarse or fine grained sediment
Boulders from local cliffs
Sand from rivers
Mud from rivers

Significant biologic material on tropical beaches

Example: Coral reef material

Material is always in transit along the shoreline.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Sand Movement Along Beach

Perpendicular to shoreline (toward and away)
Swash water rushes up the beach
Backwash water drains back to the ocean

Parallel to shoreline (up-coast or down-coast)

Longshore current transports sand along
the beach

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Summertime Beach
Light wave activity
Wide, sandy berm
Steep beach face
Swash dominates

Longshore bars not

present
Generally milder
storms

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Wintertime Beach
Heavy wave activity
Backwash dominates
Sediment moved
away from shore
Narrower beach
Flattened beach face

Longshore bars are

present
Stormy weather

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Light vs. Heavy Wave Activity

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Longshore Current
Zigzag movement of water along shore
Longshore currents travel at speeds up to 4 km
(2.5 miles) per hour

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Longshore Drift
Also called longshore transport, beach drift, or
littoral drift
Transports beach sediment in a zigzag fashion
in the direction of the longshore current
Occurs in surf zone

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Longshore Drift
Millions of tons of sediment moved yearly
Direction of transport changes due to wave
approach
Net sediment movement is southward along the
Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the United States.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Two Major Types of Shores

Erosional Shores
Well-developed cliffs
Exist where tectonic uplift of coast occurs
U.S. Pacific coast is one example

Depositional Shores
Gradually subsiding shore
Barrier islands and sand deposits are
common.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Erosional Shores
Protruding bits of
land called headlands
absorb much wave
energy.
Wave-cut cliffs and
sea caves are other
features carved out
by wave activity.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Erosional Shores
Sea arches form where
sea caves in headlands
erode all the way
through.
Sea stacks form when
the tops of sea arches
erode away completely.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Erosional Shorelines
Uplift of wave-cut
bench generates a
marine terrace.
Wave erosion
increases with
More shore exposed
to open ocean
Smaller tidal range
Weaker bedrock

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Depositional Shorelines
Bay barrier, or bay mouth bar
seals off a lagoon from the ocean

Tombolo
sand bar that connects an island to the
mainland

Barrier islands
long offshore sand deposits that parallel the
coast

Spit
connects at one end to the mainland and hooks
into a bay at the other

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Depositional Coast Features

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Bay Barrier, Marthas Vineyard, MA

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Tombolo, Goat Rock Beach, CA

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Barrier Islands
Extremely long
offshore deposits of
sand parallel to coast
Do not exist along
erosional shorelines
Protect mainland from
high wave activity
Appear to have
developed at end of
last ice age 18,000
years ago
2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Barrier Islands
Separated from
mainland by lagoon
Attractive building
sites because of
proximity to ocean
Many structures
destroyed by ocean
or required relocation

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Heavily Developed Barrier Island, NJ

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Barrier Islands
More than 2000
barrier islands
identified worldwide
Almost 300 along
Atlantic and Gulf
coasts of U.S.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Barrier Island Features

Ocean Beach closest part of the island to
the ocean
Dune stabilized by grasses; protect lagoon
from strong storms
Barrier flat grassy area that forms behind
dunes
Salt marshes inland of barrier flat
Low marsh extends from mean sea level to
high neap tide line.
High marsh extends to highest spring tide line.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Barrier Island Features

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Barrier Islands
Migrate landward over time due to rising sea
levels
Older peat deposits found on ocean beach

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Deltas
Triangular deposits of
sediment where
rivers empty into
oceans or seas
Distributaries
branching channels
carry sediment to
ocean

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Deltas
Delta shoreline is
smoothed when erosion
exceeds deposition.
Nile River Delta currently
eroding

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Beach Compartments
Three major components:
1. Rivers that supply beach sediment
2. Beach itself
3. Offshore submarine canyons

Beach starvation human activities block

supply of sand to beach compartments

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Beach Compartments

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Emerging Shorelines
Shorelines above current sea level
Marine terraces flat platforms backed by
cliffs
Stranded beach deposits
Indication that former shoreline has risen
above sea level

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Submerging Shorelines

Shoreline below current sea level

Drowned beaches
Submerged dune topography
Drowned river valleys

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Changing Sea Level

Two major processes can change sea level:
Local tectonic processes raise or lower
Earths crust
Worldwide changes in sea level

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Changing Sea Level

Tectonic Movements
Include crustal uplift or subsidence and
localized folding, faulting, and tilting
Example: The Pacific coast of the United
States is currently being uplifted.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Changing Sea Level

Isostatic adjustments
rebound of Earths crust
after removal of heavy loads
or sinking with application of
heavy loads
Ice loading from glaciers
during ice ages

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Changing Sea Level

Eustatic sea level changes worldwide
Can be caused by
Formation or destruction of inland lakes
Sea floor spreading rate changes
Formation or melting of glaciers
Thermal expansion or contraction of seawater

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Pleistocene Epoch and Today

From about 2 million to 10,000 years ago, a series of
four ice ages affected Earth.
Sea level was at least 120 meters
(400 feet) below todays sea level.
If all remaining ice on Earth melted today, sea level
would rise another 70 meters (230 feet).

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

U.S. Coasts
Three coasts:
Atlantic coast
Pacific coast
Gulf coast

Each has its own unique characteristics.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Atlantic Coast
Most coasts open to storm wave attack
Barrier islands common from Massachusetts
south
Bedrock
Florida bedrock is resistant limestone.
Northward through New Jersey is composed
of easily erodable recent deposits.
New York through Maine has glacier-affected
rocks.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Atlantic Coast
Strong storms called noreasters can damage
the coast north of Cape Hatteras, NC.
Noreasters can generate storm waves
up to 6 meters (20 feet).

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Atlantic Coast
Average erosion is 0.8 meter (2.6 feet) per
year; sea is migrating landward
Delaware, New York, and Georgia have the
most serious erosion problem.
Northern Maine may still be rebounding from
last ice age sea level dropping

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Atlantic Coast
Barrier islands
Drowned river valleys
Common
Form large bays

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Gulf Coast

Low tidal range

Generally low wave energy
Tectonically subsiding
Mississippi delta dominates
Locally sea level rises due to compaction of
delta sediments

Average rate of erosion is 1.8 meters

(6 feet) per year.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Pacific Coast
Tectonically rising
Experiencing less
erosion than Atlantic
or Gulf coasts
Open exposure to
high energy waves
Average rate of
erosion 0.005 meter
(0.016 feet) per year

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Hard Stabilization
Structures built to decrease coastal erosion
and interfere with sand movement
Also called armoring of the shore
Often results in unwanted outcomes
Some structures may increase wave erosion.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Hard Stabilization
Four major types of stabilization structures:
1. Groins and groin fields
2. Jetties
3. Breakwaters
4. Seawalls

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Groins and Groin Fields

Built perpendicular to the
beach
Often made of rip rap,
or large blocky
material
Traps sand upcoast,
which can cause erosion
downstream of the
longshore current

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Groins and Groin Fields

Upcoast trapping of
sand may necessitate
a groin field, or a
series of groins built
along a beach.
Sand is distributed
differently, but no
additional sand is on
the beach.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Jetties

Similar to groin
Built perpendicular to shore
Built in pairs
Built to protect harbor entrances

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Jetties at Santa Cruz Harbor, CA

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Breakwaters
Built parallel to a
shoreline
Designed to protect
harbors from waves
Can cause excessive
erosion, requiring
dredging to keep area
stable

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Breakwater at Santa Barbara, CA

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Breakwater at Santa Barbara, CA

Between 1931 and 1949, breakwater
disrupted longshore transport of sand

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Seawalls
Destructive to environment
Designed to armor coastline
and protect human
developments
One large storm can
remove beach
Wave activity eventually
undermines seawall
structure; need continual
repair or will collapse

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Seawall Damage

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Alternatives to Hard Stabilization

Three major alternatives
1. Construction restrictions
2. Beach replenishment
3. Relocation

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Alternatives to Hard Stabilization

Construction restrictions
Simplest alternative
Limit building near shorelines
Paradoxically, National Flood Insurance
Program encouraged construction.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Alternatives to Hard Stabilization

Beach replenishment
Sand added to beach/longshore current
Expensive; costs between $5 and $10 per
cubic yard
Sand must be dredged from elsewhere.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Beach Replenishment

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Alternatives to Hard Stabilization

Relocation
Move structures rather than protect them in
areas of erosion
Can allow humans to live in natural balance
with beach processes

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Relocation of Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, NC

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

End of CHAPTER 10
The Coast:
Beaches and Shoreline Processes

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.