Evaluate the success of strategies that have been used to manage the impact of coastal processes and landforms on human activities

Evaluate the success of strategies that have been used to manage the impact of coastal processes and landforms on human activities

For the introduction introduce case study, say where it is and why it’s important for it to be protected.

One case study that I have looked at is Barmouth bay which is located on the West coast or North Wales. It is a very popular tourist destination that is full of life so it is very important for this piece of land to be protected. Many people enjoy visiting this town and would be distraught if it were to be damaged by coastal processes. Different strategies are either put in place to hold the line- maintain the existing coastline by building defences, advance the line which is where new defences are built seaward of the existing ones. Sometimes they choose to have no intervention and allow natural processes to shape the land however this was not the case at Barmouth as it would put too many lives at risk.

Sea wall- One of the main strategies that has already been put in place all along Barmouth is the sea wall which was built in the 1930’s. The aim of this strategy was to protect the land and town from any high energy waves and to reduce the chance of coastal flooding. This structure is an example of hard engineering as it was an expensive process and had high impact on the environment. For some people this gave them positive feelings towards it as the fact that it was so big and made out of strong concrete gave them the reassurance that it would work however some people saw it is as ugly and unattractive. In 1972 they decided to add a curved edge to the sea wall in order to protect the land even more and in hope that it would absorb the waves energy. This however caused the wall to reflect the energy of the waves back into the sea so the waves still remained powerful and damage was more likely to happen. As the wall is place all along Barmouth, it protects the busy town from the violent waves and puts them at less risk of flooding. They also the…