soft engineering coastal management case study

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Best management practices for soft engineering of shoreline

Historically, many river shorelines were stabilized and hardened with concrete and steel to protect developments from flooding and erosion, or to accommodate commercial navigation or industry. Typically shorelines were developed for a single purpose. Today, there is growing interest in developing shorelines for multiple purposes so that additional benefits can be accrued. Soft engineering is the use of ecological principles and practices to reduce erosion and achieve the stabilization and safety of shorelines, while enhancing habitat, improving aesthetics, and saving money. The purpose of this best management practices manual is to provide insights and technical advice to local governments, developers, planners, consultants, and industries on when, where, why, and how to incorporate soft engineering of shorelines into shoreline redevelopment projects and reap subsequent benefits. More specific technical advice and contact information can be found in the soft engineering case studies presented in this manual.

Citation Information

Coastal Protection and Management – Soft Engineering

Soft engineering techniques involve working with nature to manage the coastline. Techniques include cliff stabilisation, dune regeneration and managed retreat.

Beach nourishment

Beach nourishment involves adding sand and shingle to a beach from elsewhere. By building up beach material this helps create a wide, sandy beach which reduce the erosion of cliffs (compared to narrow beaches).

Cliff stabilisation

Cliff stabilisation involves reducing the slope angle of the cliff and planting vegetation. The image below shows an example of this at Mappleton, Holderness Coast.

Dune regeneration

Dune regeneration involves creating or restoring sand dunes. The vegetation on sand dunes help stabilise the dune which then provide a barrier and absorb wave energy. During dune regernation the land needs to be carefully managed so that any new vegetation that is planted is appropriately protected from trampling by humans. This could involve temporarily fencing off the dunes or by providing wooden walkways.

Waves are generated by wind blowing over the sea. The characteristics of waves are determined by the strength of the wind, its duration and fetch (distance a wave travels). The stronger the wind the greater the friction on the surface of the sea and therefore the bigger the wave.

Creating marshland

By creating marshland the vegetation that grows on it can help stabilise sediment and reduce the speed and energy of waves. This reduces the erosive power of the waves.

Managed Retreat (coastal realignment)

Managed retreat (or coastal realignment) involves allowing the sea to breach an existing defence and flood the land behind it. Overtime, this land will become marshland.

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Hard & Soft Engineering Coastal Management Case Studies

Hard & Soft Engineering Coastal Management Case Studies

Hard Engineering - Coastal Management - Isle of Wight

The Isle of Wight has  65 miles  of spectacular coastline, 28 miles of which are designated Heritage Coast . This varied coastline is one of the Island’s main assets.

The Isle of Wight has four coastal defence options:

• Hold the Line  – retain existing coastline – maintain current deference’s, upgrade or install new ones
• Do nothing but monitor  – it may not be technically, environmentally or economically possible to do coastal defence work
• Retreat the line –  this is used to manage the rate and process by which the coast retreats
• Advance the line  – build new defences seaward, in front of the land, to protect the land behind

Hard Engineering - Singapore

Breakwaters

• 3 Break waters were installed at Siloso Beach, Singapore
• They cost $1 million dollars each, 80 metres long.
• Effective as they reduce the amount of erosion from waves as the waves break before - the energy dissipates. Siloso beach is a high tourist attraction and the breakwaters have been used and integrated in tourist attractions such as 'MegaZip'.

Soft Engineering - Coastal Management

The Sefton Coast, NW England

This is a preview of the whole essay

• 20% of the UK's Sand dunes
• Pine forests being
• Erosion rate is 5 m per year (dredging and wall construction in Liverpool makes less material available

Why manage?

Large number of visitors attract it

The pine forest is a colonies for the red squirrel

Sand extraction for glass polishing

• Board walks for visitors (Don't trample on the sand)
• Fenced of and zoned off areas
• Vehicles prohibited

Document Details

• Author Type Student
• Word Count 630
• Page Count 4
• Level AS and A Level
• Subject Geography

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The advantages limitations of hard soft engineering to coastal protection

Critically discuss, using international case studies, the comparative advantages and limitations of 'hard' and 'soft' engineering approaches to coastal protection and defence.

Related Papers

Marcel Stive

Abstract After introducing soft defence techniques as an alternative to hard defence techniques, the need is emphasized to consider the coastal area as an integral system. By recalling the main driving factors for coastal management: conflict resolution, resilience and sustainability, we logically arrive at the concepts of ecological engineering and ecotechnology, which are increasingly acknowledged as possible solutions to achieve sustainable use of coastal space as a resource.

Krystian Pilarczyk

Coastal Engineering

Jim Van Belzen , Louise Firth , Victor Ceccherelli , Marina Colangelo , Juliette Jackson , S. Hoggart

Paul Visser

Journal of Coastal Conservation

Beate M W Ratter

Rui Taborda

Ecological Engineering

Peter Paalvast

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Hornsea, located on the Holderness Coast, has a range of coastal management strategies to reduce the impact of coastal erosion .

Hornsea Case Study

Location of hornsea.

Hornsea is a small coastal town on the Holderness Coast , located between Bridlington and Withernsea. A 2.9km stretch of shoreline fronts the town of Hornsea. Hornsea consists of a high-density urban development containing residential and various tourist-related properties. Hornsea’s local economy is dependent on tourism and recreation, as well as incorporating a small fishing industry.

Geology of Hornsea

Hornsea lies upon boulder clay . This material is unconsolidated till was deposited by glaciers during the last ice age 18,000 years ago. The boulder clay consists of about 72% mud, 27% sand and 1% boulders and large pebbles.

Coastal Features at Hornsea

The groynes on Hornsea beach ensure wide and relatively steep beaches. The beach material is made up of sand and shingle. The exposed boulder clay cliffs to the north give way to a seawall along the front of the town. The boulder clay cliffs are again exposed to the south of the town.

What are the reasons for coastal management at Hornsea?

There are several reasons why planners have chosen to hold the line at Hornsea. These include:

• Hornsea Mere, Yorkshire’s largest natural lake, is an important recreational site for visitors and residents and one of the key features for the marketing of Hornsea. It is also of special wildlife interest and is designated a European Special Protection Area (SPA);
• Its high population density, with a population of 8,327 (Office for National Statistics (ONS), 2020 mid-year estimate), and
• The wide range of infrastructure already in place in the town.

What is the coastal management strategy at Hornsea?

The position of the coastline at Hornsea has been artificially fixed since existing coastal defences were erected in the early 1900s. The current coastal management plan is to hold the line at Hornsea. This means coastal defences will be maintained and replaced to protect the town.

A range of management techniques has limited coastal erosion at Hornsea. The map below shows a range of management strategies and the impact these are having further along the coast.

Hard defences in the form of a concrete seawall and timber groynes afford protection , and an ongoing refurbishment programme ensures this has continued. The image below shows groynes to the south of Hornsea.

Coastal management at Hornsea

The groynes trap sediment transported by longshore drift , providing a wide sandy beach. This provides effective protection from destructive waves.

The sea wall provides effective protection from destructive waves. Rock armour has recently been placed along a considerable stretch of the sea wall to absorb wave energy and increase the lifespan of the sea wall.

The videos below show the importance of the seawall at Hornsea, particularly during a spring tide combined with strong winds!

A stone and steel gabion and a concrete revetment have been erected to the southern end of Hornsea. This helps protect Longbeach Leisure Park. The gabion absorbs wave energy, protecting the boulder clay cliffs behind.

More recently, rock armour has extended the coastal defences to the south of the town. This absorbs wave energy, protecting the boulder clay cliffs below the Longbeach Leisure Park park.

The image below shows coastal defences to the south of Hornsea. These include groynes, extending at right angles out into the sea, and rock armour can also be seen to the south.

View north from the south of the defences

What are the effects of coastal management at Hornsea?

Positive impacts of coastal management at Hornsea

The hard engineering solutions provide effective protection from coastal erosion. The defences withstand stormy winters.

The groynes have ensured a wide, sandy beach which attracts thousands of visitors to the town, supporting many local businesses, including Longbeach Leisure Park, a holiday park to the south of Hornsea.

The wide sandy beach allows boat owners to launch, supporting the local fishing industry and leisure users.

Negative impacts of coastal management at Hornsea

Where the defences end to the south of Hornsea, erosion rates have rapidly increased. The downdrift beach is starved of material, trapped behind groynes. Therefore, the unprotected, soft boulder clay is rapidly eroding. There is little beach material to the south of the defences, so even neap tides (low-high tides) reach the base of the cliffs.

The image below shows the impact of the terminal groyne.

Terminal groyne, rock armour and cliff slumping

The photograph below was taken to the south of Hornsea. The camera is pointing northeast. You can see the impact of erosion to the south of the coastal defences. This has led to conflict between the owners of the Longbeach Leisure Park and the East Riding of Yorkshire County Council, who are responsible for managing coastal defences at Hornsea.

Take a look at the Hornsea gallery and video collection.

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Use the images below to explore locations along the Holderness Coast.

Flamborough

Spurn Point

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De Jong, B.; Keijsers, J.G.S.; Riksen, M.J.P.M.; Krol, J., and Slim, P.A., 2014. Soft engineering vs. a dynamic approach in coastal dune management: a case study on the North Sea barrier island of Ameland, The Netherlands.

Dunes act as flood defenses in coastal zones, protecting low-lying interior lands from flooding. To ensure coastal safety, insight is needed on how dunes develop under different types of management. The current study focuses on two types of coastal dune management: (1) a “soft engineering” approach, in which sand fences are placed on the seaward side of foredunes, and (2) “dynamic coastal management,” with minimal or no dune maintenance. The effects of these management styles on dune formation are examined for two adjacent coastal sections of the North Sea barrier island of Ameland, The Netherlands, where dynamic coastal management was introduced in 1995 and 1999, respectively. For each section, we analyzed cross-shore profile data from 1980 until 2010, deriving dune foot position, crest position, crest height, and foredune volume for each year and analyzing the situation before and after the change in management. We further assessed the effect of the management regime on dune vegetation. Other factors that could influence dune development were also taken into account, such as beach width and shape, water levels, wave heights, and nourishments. Results show that implementation of dynamic coastal management did not directly affect the volume of the foredune. Growth was occasionally interrupted, coinciding with high-water events. In periods between erosive storms, dune growth rates did not show a significant difference between management types ( p = 0.09 and 0.32 for sections 1 and 2, respectively). The main effect of the change was on vegetation development. Dynamic coastal management, therefore, did not reduce coastal safety.

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