Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Dynamic revetments have also been used as an alternative to stone revetments
or seawalls (Komar and Allen
2010
; Ahrens
1990
). Also termed “cobble berms” or
“rubble beaches” they involve the construction of a cobble beach at the shore, in
front of land or property to be protected. These structures are effective in defend-
ing the coastline as the sloping, porous cobble beach disrupts and dissipates wave
energy by adjusting its morphology in response to the prevailing wave conditions.
Dynamic revetments are therefore a variation of beach renourishment. An exam-
ple of the introduction of a dynamic revetment was at Amroth in Pembrokeshire,
United Kingdom where in the 1990s large cobbles were added to a shingle beach
to give it additional stability (Fig.
3.11
).
Other 'soft' methods of managing erosion include efforts to manage coastal
sediment but also form a protective feature and therefore form an integral part of
the beach system. Dune creation and restoration using vegetation and artificial
methods to stabilise the dune system have been employed (Fig.
3.12
). Dunes have
been created and built up using clay cores (Wamsley et al.
2011
), sand-filled bags
(Komar and Allen
2010
) and dredge material (Matias et al.
2005
), all with varying
levels of success. Other more primitive methods can be employed, for example in
Fig. 3.12
Planting of dune vegetation on Mona Vale Beach, Australia in 2013 in an attempt to
halt erosion by restoring and stabilising the dune system. The stabilised dune is intended to pro-
tect coastal properties, avoiding the need for structural engineering or other 'soft' measures such
as beach renourishment. © Nick Lewis
