Case study of coastal processes and visitor management
The Seven Sisters country park is located in the South Downs National Park, half way between Brighton and Eastbourne (south coast). The Seven Sisters Country Park includes…
- 280 hectares of chalk cliffs
- river valley
- Grassland.
It is a popular place for its river and coastal features and outdoor activities including , , and .
The Country Park is named after the famous Seven Sisters that form part of the chalk cliffs on the Sussex Heritage Coast, one of Britain's coastlines. East Sussex County Council manages the Park.
The UK has 15 members in the National Park family, which are protected areas due to their wildlife, countryside and their inheritance.
As the coast is changing due to erosion, coastal defences are put in place. Climate change is an issue.
What makes the valley beautiful is the Cuckmere River. The river was changed and made straight by people and the soil around it is very dry so it is good because it soaks up the rainwater so it doesn’t flood the land. The rivers feature include…
- Flood plain
- Mouth of the river meets the sea
- There is a lot of greenery in many species
The valley is very green even though they chop down trees for energy; they plant trees back to keep it greener.
The current is faster on the outside of the bend because the river is deeper (there is less friction to slow the water down, so it has more energy).
Meander:
Erosion causes the outside bends to get closer until there is only a small bit of land left between the bends called the neck.
The river was straightened by people because it was easier to get across. The soil is very fry and soaks up alot of rainwater. The rabbits were brought by the humans, which feed on grass and they dig holes, which takes them underground where they fertilise the soil.
Green
-Chopped trees for energy for heating houses.
Horse Chesnutt- No native species
Coastal landforms and processes
Coastal Erosion:
Cuckmere Haven is home to a large variety of wildlife, and has a rich ecosystem. Domestic sheep and cattle eat the grass, keeping the fields at a constant vegetation level. The result is a fertile area of land providing varied habitats. The beaches are made up of and, right by the sea, rock pools. The cliffs are famous for its chalk but now the chalk is eroding off the cliffs.
Being a very soft rock, the chalk which has fallen from the cliff erodes away from the hard flint, which then often accumulates as a shingle beach. Wave action batters the individual flints together and they become rounded pebbles; in the process, they may become stained by minerals in the seawater. Because waves generally approach this coast from a southwestern direction, the shingle tends to drift along the beach from west to east.
It is likely that in the future it will turn into a slump, which means that the material shifts with a rotation when it is wet, causing the cliffs to collapse. The pebble beach slows the waves down, reducing their erosive power so narrow beaches give less protection. The impacts are that homes near the cliff are at risk of collapsing into the sea.
The cliffs can be protected but the aim of coastal management is to protect people and the environment from the impacts of erosion and flooding. This is not as simple because they are cost-effective. Some strategies for coastal management are more sustainable than others. Sustainable strategies meet the needs of people without stopping people in the future getting the things they need. This means not using up too many resources or damaging the environment. Hard engineering strategies are usually less sustainable than soft engineering strategies because they cost more money to build and maintain, and they damage the environment more.
Longshore drift:
The tree on the right is growing at an angle and it is very important in the Seven Sister’s country park. This shows it has been done by the prevailing wind, which causes long shore drift in the shingle beach.
Farmhouses are protects by hills because of the prevailing wind as well.
How the visitors are managed in Cuckmere Valley
Potential negative impacts:
Impacts on people’s lives:
- Homes near the cliff are at risk of collapsing into the sea
- Property prices along the coast have fallen sharply for those houses at risk from erosion.
- Accessibility to some settlements have been affected because roads near the cliff tops are at risk of collapsing into the sea.
- Businesses are at risk from erosion so people will lose their jobs
- 80 000m² of farmland is lost each year. This is a huge effect on farmers’ livelihoods.
Environmental impacts:
- Some SSSIs (Sites of Special Scientific Interest) are threatened. The Lagoons are separated from the sea by a narrow strip of sand and shingle (a bar). If this is eroded, it will connect the Lagoons to the sea and they would be destroyed.
Economic impacts:
- Loss of tourism- Many coastal areas are popular tourist destinations. Erosion can put people off visiting. Fewer tourists’ means businesses that rely on tourism may close.
- Damage and repair is extremely expensive.
Political impacts:
- The government has to make policies to reduce future erosion by building more or better coastal defences or they can manage the use of areas that might be eroded eg: stop people living there.
To control the people visiting Cuckmere Valley they have rules:
- Walk to the beach along the easy access trail.
- Catch a few fish from the beach!
- Take your litter home with you.
- Enjoy all scenery, especially the great views from the top of the Seven Sisters cliffs and hillsides.
- Check out the wildlife and the underwater world of the rock pools at low tide.
- Fish anywhere other than the beach - this includes the meanders and the riverbanks
- Let your dogs approach sheep and cattle as this can cause harm to your dog or the animals
- Cycle anywhere apart from the valley floor
- Pick any flowers
