Lab 9 Assignment
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Georgia State University *
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Geography
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Feb 20, 2024
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Lab 9: Oceans & Coastal Systems
GEOG 1113L – Introduction to Landforms Lab
Name: _____________
I.
How the Coast Works
1.
What area is considered the shore?
2.
Describe the type of area that is required for a beach to form.
3.
Beaches require constructive waves, which are defined as what?
4.
What is longshore drift?
5.
What is the difference between attrition and abrasion?
6.
What artificial barrier do humans use to protect the coast from high tide?
7.
What barrier is used to protect against longshore drift?
II.
Coastal Systems This activity can be completed with the use of the USGS website links provided. Do not copy and paste the information from the websites – if you do, you will fail the assignment. Respond to each question in your own words.
Go to the link http://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/c1075/agencies.html
and review the list of federal organizations with regulatory or research responsibilities for our coasts to answer the following questions. Provide both the agency’s acronym and entire name for full credit.
1.
Which federal organization administers NFIP?
2.
NFIP is an acronym which stands for what?
3.
Which federal organization regulates the discharge of coastal pollutants and the disposal of dredged sediments?
4.
Which federal organization conducts applied research and development for design, construction,
operation, and maintenance activities related to harbors, navigational waterways, and coastal protection?
5.
Which federal organization manages extensive coastal lands as wildlife preserves; conducts research on coastal wetlands, fish and wildlife populations, and changes in habitat?
6.
Critical thinking:
Which federal organization would be responsible for reviewing engineering plans for a dam on a river?
Now go to the link http://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/c1075/types.html
and review the four types of coasts listed there. Answer the following questions.
7.
Which type of coast listed in the link is the type of the Florida Keys? 8.
What importance do coastal wetlands hold?
9.
Which type of coast protects coasts from waves and storms?
10.
The website describes the differences in geology between rocky and sandy coasts. According to the information in this web link, which type of coast is dominated by depositional features? Rocky or Sandy?
11.
According to the information in this web link, which type of coast is dominated by erosional features? Rocky or Sandy?
Now go to this link http://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/c1075/change.html
. Review the information there to help answer the following questions.
12.
Name two ways that sediment is brought to coasts.
13.
What coastal mechanism is the primary agent of coastal movement: a major cause of sand migration along
barrier and mainland beaches?
(Look at this diagram to help you with this question: http://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/c1075/longshore.html
)
14.
In your own words, describe the “dynamic balance” in coastal environments mentioned on the website.
15.
Which type of coast described in the web link is that of Pinellas County (St. Pete Beach, Sand Key, the central Gulf region of peninsular Florida)?
16.
How are the levees on the Mississippi River contributing to coastal wetland loss in Louisiana? Describe what is happening in a few complete sentences.
17.
What is beach nourishment (also called beach replenishment)?
18.
Go to the picture on this web link http://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/c1075/norfolk.html
(the small version of this picture is also part of the previous link). This picture shows the effect of groins on a sandy beach. Based on the areas of sand accumulation and erosion around each groin, what is the direction of longshore current and longshore drift? From the upper left side to the lower right or from the lower right side of picture toward the upper left?
19.
Sea level rise is dangerous to coastal communities because it results in increased erosion of sandy coasts, greater potential for inland flooding and possible inundation of low-lying coastal areas. List two human activities which increase the likelihood of sea level rise. Now read the information at this web link http://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/c1075/conclusions.html
and answer the following questions.
20.
What are three erosion mitigation techniques that closely replicate natural processes (more so than other engineered structures such as groins)?
21.
List three facts you found interesting and/or takeaways from the web link in your own words.
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III.
Case Study: Coastal Stabilization
Read the fictional case study below and answer the following questions. During a lecture on coastal
stabilization structures
(breakwaters, groins, and
jetties), Professor Waters
described a coastal city that
planned to build a boat
anchorage for sailboats.
Professor Waters said,
“Initially, the city had a straight
coastline (Figure 1). Studies
suggested that if they built any
coastal structure within the
surf zone, it would interrupt
the flow of sand along the
beach, so they decided to build
a breakwater out beyond the
surf zone.” The professor
explained, “A breakwater is a
hard structure composed of
rocky, blocky materials that is firmly attached to the sea floor. It is a few feet above sea level and is designed to break incoming waves, thus creating quiet water behind for a boat anchorage.”
Professor Waters continued,
“A short time after the
breakwater was built, a bulge
of sand formed on the beach
(Figure 2, Deposition
) along
with an equally large area of
erosion just downstream
(Figure 2, Erosion
). This was an
unexpected consequence of
building the breakwater and
the city did not like the
change. In fact, the city
wanted to get back to a
straight shoreline.”
“Here’s where you come in,” said the professor. “With your knowledge of coastal stabilization structures, what ideas do you have for helping this city to return its shoreline to a straight shoreline?” Professor Waters told the students that like most things in life, there are some rules:
1.
Some kind of a boat anchorage must remain.
2.
The boat anchorage must adequately protect the sailboats from wave damage.
3.
Coastal structures can be moved, added, modified, or eliminated.
4.
Don’t just pass the problem along downcoast (you must be a good neighbor!).
5.
The least expensive idea is best.
Amy
offered the first idea. She said, “Why don’t they just cut a hole in the middle of the breakwater or break it up into parts? That way, sand could get through to the beach and the erosion would fill in.”
Bridgette
had a different idea. “Actually, if they just changed the breakwater to make it a floating breakwater, then they could move it to different parts of the coast and they wouldn’t have either the deposition or the erosion,” she said triumphantly.
Charles
expressed his thoughts. “I don’t think altering the breakwater is a good idea. How about this: If they put a groin to the right of the erosion, it would fill in the erosion with sand because a groin causes upstream deposition,” he explained. “Then, if they put a second groin to the left of the deposition, it would cause downstream erosion and thus eliminate the bulge of sand behind the breakwater. Maybe they could remove the groins when the shoreline was straight again.”
Damien
shared his perspective about the problem. “Why don’t they just build a boat harbor with jetties to protect the harbor entrance?” he asked. “The best place would be to the left of the deposition. That way, the jetties would cause downstream erosion and thus the deposition would disappear.”
Eva
offered, “I think they should just move the sand from the deposition to the erosion. This could be done with a suction dredge or even a bulldozer. Maybe to save money, they should make prison inmates move the sand with shovels and buckets.” Then Fred
suggested, “Yeah, but they’re not getting rid of the root of the problem, which is the breakwater in the first place. Since we can’t eliminate the breakwater, why not move it further offshore? They’d still keep the anchorage, but it would just be a little further to get to the sailboats.”
Gracie
, after hearing all the other ideas, came up with, “I think the breakwater could be designed differently to still protect the boats, but have a minimum impact on the shoreline. Maybe redesign it into
the shape of a wedge or a circle. That way, the waves could go around it and keep moving the sand down
the beach, thus taking care of both the deposition and the erosion.”
1.
Critically analyze each student’s idea, including its potential drawbacks. Listed below are the students in the story. Considering the rules established for the exercise, rank each student’s idea from most feasible
to least feasible
for helping the city get its shoreline back to a straight shoreline. Give a different score to each character. Be prepared to explain your choices.
Most feasible idea <― 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ―> Least feasible idea
_____ Amy _____ Damien
_____ Bridgette
_____ Eva
_____ Charles
_____ Fred
_____ Gracie
2.
List three students’ ideas that you found an issue with and explain why.
3.
List three students’ ideas that you liked and explain why (you could list an idea you put in question 2 if you liked the idea and also saw issues).
4.
Do you have any ideas of your own for helping the city return its shoreline to a straight line? If not, which idea or combination of ideas presented by the students do you think would work best?
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