The Holderness Coastline is located near East Riding of Yorkshire. The coastline is Europe's fastest eroding coastline. This case study will explain the process and effects of the erosion taking place

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Holderness Case Study

Case Study Questions

Who is affected by the erosion?

What is being done to manage the coast?

Where are the effects of management and where is the erosion taking place?

Why is the coast being eroded?

When does the most erosion take place?

How do human effect the erosion?

The Holderness Coastline is located near East Riding of Yorkshire. The coastline is Europe’s fastest eroding coastline. This case study will explain the process and effects of the erosion taking place and the coastal management decisions.

The Holderness coast stretches over 60 km and supports many homes and towns. Over the last 2000 years the coast has retreated 400m and continues to do so at a speedy speed. The retreat caused over 30 villages since Roman times, to have fallen into the sea. The average rate of retreat calculated is 1.8m per year. Many people along the coastline are affected due to the rapid retreat of the land. Many of their property are threatened, and some of the people are not guaranteed that their area will be protected.

The Holderness coast used to be covered with glacier sheets. When it defrosted, it left materials that are very soft and contain rich soil which makes it easy to erode. The two main rocks are chalk and boulder clay, the clay cliffs on the south are easily eroded compared to the more resistance chalk who were less affected by the destructive waves.

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The coastline is exposed to the destructive waves which travel across the largest fetch. These waves are created by prevailing winds from North-east which travel across a large fetch. These waves erode the foot of the cliffs creating a wave-cut notch. When the cliff can’t support itself, it collapses. Long shore drift carries an estimated amount of half a million tones of sediments per year down south and deposits it in the lower energy environment. The material collects to form a spit called Spurn Head. But there isn’t any material left to protect cliffs from further erosion by forming beaches.

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