Which is a hard engineering method?

a sea wall. It is a built structure.

trap sand moved by longshore drift. The beach builds up on one side of each groyne.

What is beach nourishment?

adding sand or shingle to a beach. A wider beach absorbs more wave energy.

Which is a disadvantage of a sea wall?

It is very expensive to build and maintain. It protects well but costs a great deal.

Why is managed retreat considered sustainable?

It works with natural processes and needs little maintenance. The new salt marsh protects the land behind.

Living at the coast: opportunities, hazards and coastal defence

In plain words

Coasts are valuable places to live, and dangerous ones. When the sea starts taking land or flooding it, someone has to decide: build a wall, feed the beach, or step back and let the sea have it.

6 things to know

Opportunities of living near the coast: fishing, ports and trade, tourism, flat land for building and farming, and energy from wind and tides.
Hazards: coastal erosion and cliff collapse, flooding from storm surges, tropical storms, tsunamis, and rising sea level.
Hard engineering builds structures. A sea wall reflects waves: it is effective but very expensive. Groynes trap sand moved by longshore drift, building up the beach, but starve beaches further along. Rock armour (large boulders) absorbs wave energy. Gabions are wire cages of rocks.
Soft engineering works with natural processes. Beach nourishment adds sand to make the beach wider. Dune regeneration plants grass to stabilise dunes. Both look natural but need repeating.
Managed retreat lets the sea flood low-value land, creating salt marsh that absorbs wave energy. It is cheap and sustainable, but land is lost.
Decisions depend on the value of what is being protected, and on cost. Protecting one place can increase erosion in another.

Worked example

A seaside town depends on tourists who come for its sandy beach. Evaluate groynes as a way of protecting it.

For: groynes trap sand carried by longshore drift, so the beach becomes wider. A wide beach absorbs wave energy and is good for tourism.
Against: they stop sand reaching beaches further along the coast, which then erode faster. They need maintaining, and some people think they are ugly.
Judgement: they suit this town, but the cost is partly paid by its neighbours.

Tips and tricks

Hard engineering: effective, expensive, can cause problems elsewhere. Soft engineering: cheaper, more natural, needs repeating. Use those contrasts.
Say what a defence does to the waves: reflects, absorbs or traps. That is the explanation the marks are for.

5 questions, about 2 minutes.

It lands in your notebook with its questions as flashcards.

Living at the coast: opportunities, hazards and coastal defence: 5 questions and answers

These are the quiz’s questions. Do the quiz first, then come back here for the ones that got you.

Which is a hard engineering method?
- beach nourishment
- dune regeneration
- a sea wall (the answer)
- managed retreat
It is a built structure.
What do groynes do?
- reflect waves
- trap sand moved by longshore drift (the answer)
- flood farmland
- raise cliffs
The beach builds up on one side of each groyne.
What is beach nourishment?
- building a wall
- adding sand or shingle to a beach (the answer)
- planting trees on cliffs
- removing groynes
A wider beach absorbs more wave energy.
Which is a disadvantage of a sea wall?
- It looks natural.
- It is very expensive to build and maintain. (the answer)
- It is ineffective.
- It needs repeating every year.
It protects well but costs a great deal.
Why is managed retreat considered sustainable?
- It uses a lot of concrete.
- It works with natural processes and needs little maintenance. (the answer)
- It protects every building.
- It stops sea level rising.
The new salt marsh protects the land behind.

5 questions

Tap an answer and you’ll see straight away whether it’s right, and why.

Worksheet

3 questions, 9 marks. Write your answers on paper, then check them.

Living at the coast: opportunities, hazards and coastal defence

Cambridge IGCSE Geography (9–1) 0976 · 9 marks · papermunch.org

Name ______________________________ Date ______________

Describe two hard engineering methods of coastal protection.[4]
Show answerHide answer
A sea wall: a concrete wall that reflects wave energy back to sea. Groynes: wooden or rock barriers built out from the beach that trap sand moved by longshore drift.
I got this one
Explain one disadvantage of groynes.[2]
Show answerHide answer
They stop sand moving along the coast, so beaches further along receive less sand and erode faster.
I got this one
Describe what is meant by managed retreat and give one advantage.[3]
Show answerHide answer
The sea is allowed to flood low-value land behind the coast. The salt marsh that forms absorbs wave energy. It is cheap, and it creates habitats for wildlife.
I got this one

Answers: Living at the coast: opportunities, hazards and coastal defence

1. A sea wall: a concrete wall that reflects wave energy back to sea. Groynes: wooden or rock barriers built out from the beach that trap sand moved by longshore drift.
2. They stop sand moving along the coast, so beaches further along receive less sand and erode faster.
3. The sea is allowed to flood low-value land behind the coast. The salt marsh that forms absorbs wave energy. It is cheap, and it creates habitats for wildlife.