Explain why for both physical and human reasons, some coastlines attract more human management than others.
Coastal management is controlling development and change in the coastal zone and undertaking work according to agreed principles and criteria. Physical, environmental and human reasons must be taken into consideration before coastal management commences. The different views of residents and other interested groups must also be taken into account in order to create a balanced policy. The cost - benefit analysis can be used to weigh up the positive and negative effects of the management on certain areas of coast to assess if the management would be worthwhile. Some coastlines attract more human management than others due to both human and physical reasons. If there were no human settlement, physical effects of the sea would not be a problem.
Coastal erosion is a physical process that leads to the coast being managed. Erosion is the process by which coastline rocks are broken up by the action of the sea and transported out to sea or along the coast by waves and the wind. The hydraulic effect is the main process of erosion. Continual crashing of waves onto the surface of the rock erodes it. The physical geography of the rock structure such as weaknesses, weather joints, bedding planes or faults are also affected by hydraulic action. These points are especially vulnerable to erosion as blocks of rock are loosened and break away from the main structure of the rock. This may be made worse by the type of rock being eroded. Acids dissolved in the seawater slowly corrode certain types of rock, such as chalk, clay and sandstone. Large waves throw beach material against the cliffs, a process known as abrasion. The greater the size of the breaking wave, the larger its potential load, and the greater damage it can cause to the rock. At times of extreme, harsh climate, such as storms, the load is usually greatly increased to include boulders as the sea holds more energy during this period.
