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The Dangers of Coastline Changes Essay

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Table of Contents
Introduction 2
Countering The Effects of High Seas 2
Hurricanes 3
Beach Protection 5
New Protection Methods 6
Conclusion 6
References 7

Introduction
Coastline changes due to weather and human intervention represent a major concern for coastal planners all over the world. Coastline changes, not only has an effect on citizens who own property by the seaside, it also has a major effect on our business here at McDuff. While beaches may be vacation spots for some, their disappearance through erosion a great …show more content…

Figure 1: Effects of Accretion (Komar, 1976)

During the summer months, when the seas are calmer and the waves smaller, beaches tend to build up. This process is known as accretion (http://biology.usgs.gov/s+t/SNT/noframe/cr133.htm). If the amount of winter erosion exceeds summer accretion, there is overall erosion with the land behind the beach being eroded as the beach retreats inland. The rate of retreat is called the erosion rate. Erosion may be due to one or more factors: for example, a severe winter swell, a recent hurricane, the death of an adjacent coral reef or interference in the supply of sand. Conversely, if accretion exceeds erosion, the beach gets wider over time and accretionary features, such as cuspate forelands, tom bolos, spits and bars, may develop (see Figure 1).

Hurricanes
Extreme events such as hurricanes are the major cause of shoreline changes in the Caribbean. Many hurricanes originate as tropical waves off the west coast of Africa and travel across the Atlantic Ocean gaining strength from the warm ocean waters (http://calspace.ucsd.edu/virtualmuseum/climatechange1/09_2.shtml). As tropical waves strengthen, they pass through several stages, including tropical depression and tropical storm before reaching hurricane strength. Once a system reaches tropical storm strength, it is named. Hurricanes are further classified

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