the littoral zone

offshore

area of deeping water beyond where waves break

nearshore

area of shallow water beyond low tide mark, friction between the seabed and waves causes waves to break

breaker zone

foreshore

area between high tide and low tide mark (intertidal/surf zone)

backshore

area above high tide mark, affected by wave action only during storms

types of coastline created by littoral zone

* rocky coastline


* estuarine coastline
* sandy coastline

rocky coasts vs coastal plains

rocky coasts

* mainly in North and West UK
* resistant geology, slow erosion
* high energy environments, little deposition

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coastal plains

* flat, low relief, often containing wetlands and salt marshes
* low energy environment, high deposition
* most of UK’s South and East coastlines