Coastal And Beach Erosion

The coastal environment is a dynamic system in which natural and human processes combine and interact, modifying geomorphological, physical and biological features, and in which beaches represent the most vulnerable areas. Coastal erosion is caused by many different processes like changes in prevailing wind direction, coastal currents, re-establishment of a new equilibrium profile, sea level rise, sea level fall, exceptional storms, hurricanes/cyclones, and tsunami events. This book discusses the processes, adaptation strategies and environmental impacts of coastal and beach erosion.

The coastal zone is subject to strong pressures from a large number of users. Populations are migrating to it in large numbers. Industry wants to exploit it for its space, water and manpower. Aggregate miners want to exploit mineral resources and health centers are multiplying. It is a favorite area for tourism and recreation worldwide. The zone can boom economically. However, coastlines are progressively receding worldwide, making the zone fragile, vulnerable, and unstable. The book presents methods of coastal protection and beach restoration and offers solutions to the various problems.

A practical guide for beach users, builders and homeowners. Accessible to the non-specialist, it provides expert advice concerning the dangers to be taken into consideration when buying property and building in erosion-prone areas. The book also addresses the question of how to conserve existing beaches.

The objective of this book is to focus on the physical processes that cause coastal erosion.Many scientists and engineers have focused their research on the entire range of physical processes from the waves and the currents in the nearshore to the response of the beach, via sand transport, resulting in a changing coastal morphology. Of these many processes, this book focuses only on those which directly relate the generation of coastal erosion. Some chapters deal exclusively with the physical processes, while others provide examples of erosion problems although most of the chapter topics have clear implications for issues of coastal-zone management, these issues are not belaboured as several other books are already available in this area. The objective is to provide state-of-the-art presentation of the science of coastal erosion processes.

Europe has a long history of managing coastal erosion through a variety of protection strategies, from the defences of the Venice lagoons to coastal land reclamation in the Netherlands. This book provides a comprehensive review of the entire coastline of Europe and a comparative analysis of erosion problems and solutions in each country. Each chapter discusses the natural and anthropogenic factors in the erosion process and in defence projects design and maintenance, including coastal morphology and wave climate, land use changes and use of coastal areas, the evolution of coastal protection, climate change and political and administrative assessments. Particular attention is paid to demographic and economic factors influencing coastal erosion in each country and to technical and administrative criteria influencing defence projects design. Lavishly illustrated in full colour throughout, the book represents a definitive reference work on its subject.

Greenhouse-induced climate warming increasingly appears to be a reality, and the warming climate will be accompanied by an accelerated sea level rise - as much as 60-100 cm over the next century. What is commonly absent in the discussion of rising sea level, however, is the role played by the subsidence of low-lying coastal areas, which can have a far greater local effect than the eustatic rise of the sea. The combined sea-level rise and land subsidence will almost certainly make the greatest impact on coastal societies in the densely populated regions of southern Asia, but its effects will be felt globally. This volume explores the concepts of sea-level rise and coastal subsidence, both natural and anthropogenically accelerated, in the form of a series of case studies in such diverse locations as Bangkok, Bangladesh, Venice, and the Niger and Mississippi deltas, as well as a discussion of the economic, engineering and policy responses that must be considered if the effects of local sea-level rise are to be mitigated.

This book tells you where beach sand comes from, how waves are formed and how they break and move sand down the coast, how OC works of manOCO have blocked this movement and caused beach erosion, and what can be done to save the beaches for future generations of Americans. A three-part prescription for healthy beaches is proposed: OC backing offOCO, OC bypassing sandOCO, and OC beach nourishmentOCO. So if you love waves and beaches, and care about the future of your favorite beach spot, then read this book while you enjoy the beach."