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Coastal Landforms
Explanations of coastal landforms created by coastal processes are explained below.
Arch – Continual erosion into a headland undermining the foundations. This is usually seen in hard rock
landforms such as chalk. An example on our frontage is White Ness (Thanet).
Bar – Offshore accumulation of sediments due to wave erosion, transportation and deposition. We do
not have any examples of bars along our coastline but an example is Slapton Ley, Devon.
Barrier Beach – An elongated sandy bar which runs parallel
to the beach and is attached to the coast at both ends,
however the main body is separated by lagoons. There
are no examples of this in the south east of England
however Chesil Beach is characterised by this coastal
feature.
Barrier Island – Offshore group of sandy islands arranged
parallel to the shoreline. It is not attached to the coast.
Bay – Sheltered inlet formed due to the preferential erosion of soft rock. Bays are formed over
hundreds/thousands of years due to the erosion of soft rock such as clay or sandstone. Soft rock erodes
much faster than hard rock - chalk or limestone, creating headlands. We have plenty examples of bay
formation along our coastline, including Botany Bay in Thanet, Kent and Pevensey Bay in East Sussex.
BOTANY BAY, KENT
CHESIL BEACH, DORSET
Coastal Landforms
Beach – an area of coastal sediment
accumulation at the land-sea boundary. The
beach is the first line of defence for coastal
protection. The beaches along our coastline
are characterised by shingle, sand, shell and
shale.
Delta – Deposition of fluvial sediments into the coastal waters.
Dunes – Sand accumulation in the backshore formed from wind-blown sediments creates sand dunes.
Dunes usually run parallel with the coastline and protect the hinterland from coastal erosion and
flooding. Dune systems are relatively unstable unless vegetated (e.g. marram grass) as the roots hold
the dunes in place. On our frontage we have several dune systems; Camber Sands extend eastwards
into Jury’s Gap and Climping in West Sussex also has an extensive dune system.
HASTINGS, KENT
CAMBER SANDS, KENT
Coastal Landforms
Estuary – Mouth of river causing mixing of salt and fresh water. Examples of our estuaries include River
Stour in Sandwich, the River Arun in Arun and the River Adur in Adur.
Fjord – submerged glacial valley due to sea level rise.
Headland - Outcrop of hard rock formed as
a result of the erosion of surrounding bays.
The largest headland along our frontage is
Beachy Head, East Sussex, followed by
Selsey Bill, Sussex. Both are chalk
headlands and their prominence has made
them English landmarks, from the top of
Beachy Head you can see to the east, Jury’s
Gap and to the west you can see Selsey Bill.
Mudflat – Sheltered depositional area of fine sediments periodically exposed at low tide; also known as
tidal flats. Seasalter, Kent, has a large mudflat which extends into the Swale Estuary and is designated
SSSI, RAMSAR and SPA.
Ria – Submerged river valley due to sea level rise. There are none within our area; the closest ria is in
Salcombe Estuary in Devon.
SELSEY BILL, SUSSEX
Coastal Landforms
Saltmarsh – Sheltered mud behind spits and estuaries inhabited by Spartina grass, periodically
inundated at high tide. Examples of saltmarsh along our coastline include Pagham Harbour in Sussex,
Faversham Creek on the north Kent coast and Yanlet Creek on the Isle of Grain.
Spit – Sea ward deposition of sediment in the
direction of long shore drift, often occurring on the
bend of a coastline or at the mouth of an estuary.
Examples of spits on our coastline include Shell Ness
spit on the Isle of Grain, Pagham, Castle Coote at
Seasalter and Shoreham.
Stack – Further backward erosion into a headland resulting in a collapsed arch and the formation of a
sea stack. An example of this is at Botany Bay in Kent (see Bay, for picture).
Coastal Landforms
Tombolo – Sea ward deposition of sediment linking the mainland to an island. We have no tombolo
within the south east boundaries; however good examples include Holy Island, Northumberland, St
Michael’s Mount, Cornwall, and the Isle of Portland.