Editing Coastal erosion (section)

==Factors that influence erosion rates==

===Primary factors===
[[File:Sea dune Erosion at Talace, Wales.webm|thumb|Sea-dune Erosion at Talace beach, [[Wales]]]]

The ability of [[water waves|waves]] to cause [[erosion]] of the [[cliff]] face depends on many factors.

The [[hardness]] (or inversely, the [[erodibility]]) of sea-facing rocks is controlled by the [[Rock (geology)|rock]] strength and the presence of [[fissures]], [[fractures]], and beds of non-cohesive materials such as [[silt]] and fine [[sand]].

The rate at which cliff fall [[debris]] is removed from the [[foreshore]] depends on the power of the waves crossing the [[beach]]. This energy must reach a critical level to remove material from the debris lobe. Debris lobes can be very persistent and can take many years to completely disappear.

Beaches dissipate wave energy on the foreshore and provide a measure of protection to the adjoining land.

The stability of the foreshore, or its resistance to lowering. Once stable, the foreshore should widen and become more effective at dissipating the wave energy, so that fewer and less powerful waves reach beyond it. The provision of updrift material coming onto the foreshore beneath the cliff helps to ensure a stable beach.

The adjacent [[bathymetry]], or configuration of the seafloor, controls the wave energy arriving at the coast, and can have an important influence on the rate of cliff erosion.  Shoals and bars offer protection from wave erosion by causing storm waves to break and dissipate their energy before reaching the shore. Given the dynamic nature of the seafloor, changes in the location of shoals and bars may cause the locus of beach or cliff erosion to change position along the shore.<ref name="oldale">{{cite web|url=https://woodshole.er.usgs.gov/staffpages/boldale/capecod/index.html|title=Coastal Erosion on Cape Cod: Some Questions and Answers|last=Oldale|first=Robert N.|publisher=U.S. Geological Survey|access-date=11 September 2009|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090506234829/http://woodshole.er.usgs.gov/staffpages/boldale/capecod/index.html|archive-date=6 May 2009}}</ref>

Coastal erosion has been greatly affected by the rising sea levels globally. There has been great measures of increased coastal erosion on the Eastern seaboard of the United States and in areas of coastal Guyana.<ref>{{Citation |last1=Singhroy |first1=Vernon |title=Advanced Radar Images for Monitoring Transportation, Energy, Mining and Coastal Infrastructure |date=2021 |work=Advances in Remote Sensing for Infrastructure Monitoring |pages=3–40 |editor-last=Singhroy |editor-first=Vernon |url=https://link.springer.com/10.1007/978-3-030-59109-0_1 |access-date=2025-04-09 |place=Cham |publisher=Springer International Publishing |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-59109-0_1 |isbn=978-3-030-59108-3 |last2=Fobert |first2=Mary-Anne |last3=Li |first3=Junhua |last4=Blais-Stevens |first4=Andrée |last5=Charbonneau |first5=François |last6=Das |first6=M.}}</ref> Locations such as Florida have noticed increased coastal erosion. In reaction to these increases Florida and its individual counties have increased budgets to replenish the eroded sands that attract visitors to Florida and help support its multibillion-dollar tourism industries.

<gallery widths="150" heights="150" perrow="6" class="center" caption="Coastal erosion">
File:Erodedcliffpacifica.jpg|[[Pacifica, California]] coast after major storms in 1997 (resulting from the strongest [[El Niño]] on record) destroyed the houses shown above.
File:BeachErosionCabrillo.jpg|Beach erosion at [[Cabrillo National Monument]], California.
File:BeachErosionTP.jpg|Large-scale coastal erosion at [[Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve]], California.
File:Coastal-erosion-inland.jpg|Coastal erosion at [[Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve]], California, resulted in the necessary relocation of a scenic overlook.
File:Daniabeach-coastal erosion 10-04-2017.jpg|Coastal erosion during a [[king tide]], Dania Beach, Florida
File:Cromer Coastal Erosion.jpg|Erosion of cliffs on the [[Norfolk]] coast near [[Cromer]]. The coastline along [[East Anglia]]'s [[North Sea]] coast is particularly prone to erosion, and has led to many instances of properties being relocated or destroyed over the course of history.
</gallery>

===Secondary factors===
* Weathering and transport slope processes
* Slope hydrology
* Vegetation
* Cliff foot erosion
* Cliff foot sediment accumulation
* Resistance of cliff foot sediment to attrition and transport
* Human Activities

===Tertiary factors===
* Resource extraction
* Coastal management