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Coastal Erosion: Causes and Solutions

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Coastal Erosion: Causes and Solutions
Levardis Smith
Katherine Luce
LR10 – Intro to Library Research
16 November 2010

Coastal Erosion: Causes and Solutions

More than half the world’s population lives in coastal regions, and many people visit the coast frequently. Most come for seaside recreation, but some also wonder about the origins of coastal scenery. From the United States to Australia to the UK and back, our coastlines are disappearing and we have been trying to stop it. Up and down the United States coastline, residents are worried about undermined cliffs, vanishing beaches and houses toppling into the sea. The California coast, which has soft cliffs of sedimentary rock and is heavily populated, regularly has incidents of housing damage as cliffs erode. In Australia, serious storms have eroded the beaches along the southeast section of the continent. In London, boats have been rubbing against the ocean floor and digging into sections of sedimentary rock. Waves, generated by storms, wind, or fast moving motor crafts, cause coastal erosion, which may take the form of long-term losses of sediment and rocks, or merely the temporary redistribution of coastal sediments; erosion in one location may result in accretion nearby. After many centuries of coastal erosion, can we save our coasts?

Works Cited

Barlow, Zeke. "Coastal erosion problems highlighted in new study." Ventura County Star (CA) 02 Nov. 2010: n. pag. Points of View Reference Center. EBSCO. Web. 15 Nov. 2010.
Summary: The California coastline has a natural ebb and flow of dumping sand on the shore and taking it away. But continued development along the coast, compounded with the alteration of the rivers that carry sand to the beaches, has so drastically changed the system that the natural processes are hampered. Sand fills up the man-made harbors and millions are spent to pump it onto beaches -- just to be carried away by the sea. River rocks once headed for the beaches are caught in debris basins, then removed and sold to


Cited: Barlow, Zeke. "Coastal erosion problems highlighted in new study." Ventura County Star (CA) 02 Nov. 2010: n. pag. Points of View Reference Center. EBSCO. Web. 15 Nov. 2010. Evaluation: Currency: It was dated Nov 02, 2010, which is just over 2 weeks ago, so it is really relevant.
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