Coasts 1 Introduction to Coastal Landscapes

Coasts as Natural Systems

• Inputs
  • Energy from:
    • Waves
    • Wind
    • Tides
    • Currents
  • Sediment
  • Geology
  • Sea level change
• Components
  • Erosional landforms and landscapes
  • Depositional landforms and landscapes
• Outputs
  • Dissipation of wave energy
  • Accumulation of sediment above the tidal limit
  • Sediment removed beyond the local sediment cells
• Dynamic equilibrium
  • A balance between the inputs and outputs of a system

• backshore:
  • The area between the high water mark and the landward limit of marine…