Choosing How to Defend a Coast · seed 1 · A4, ink-friendly. The answer key prints on its own page for grown-ups.

Defending a coast without passing the problem on

Geography · Physical Geography · ages 14-16
Name ______________________   Date ____________

  1. What does managed retreat mean?

    • Abandoning the coast in a panic
    • Holding every wall at any cost
    • Moving life inland on purpose, phased

  2. Which pair names a hard defence and a soft one?

    • Sea wall and beach nourishment
    • Beach nourishment and dune rebuilding
    • Sea wall and rock groyne

  3. Groynes trap sand on one stretch of beach but can starve the next one along.

    Circle one:   True   False

  4. When might a council choose managed retreat?

    • When tourists ask for taller walls
    • When one calm summer arrives
    • When defences cost more than they protect

  5. A town compares a wall with nourishment. Which three lines should it use?

    • Height, colour and fame
    • Cost, lifespan and downstream effect
    • Age, mayor and weather

  6. A defence scheme is only engineering, with no winners or losers.

    Circle one:   True   False

  7. Who should be heard before a scheme is approved?

    • Only the wall builders
    • Homeowners, councils and neighbours along the shore
    • Only summer tourists

  8. A wall saves promenade shops but the next beach erodes faster. What happened?

    • The wall moved the problem along the shore
    • The wall ended erosion everywhere
    • The beach was never sandy
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Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

Defending a coast without passing the problem on W1-mt_3Px4N4va3o-s1

  1. Moving life inland on purpose, phased · Retreat is planned and funded, which is what separates it from simply losing.
  2. Sea wall and beach nourishment · Walls are hard, nourishment is soft. The mixed pair names one of each.
  3. True · Trapping sand here means less sand arriving there. That is the trade.
  4. When defences cost more than they protect · Retreat beats rescue when the bill passes the value guarded.
  5. Cost, lifespan and downstream effect · Money, years and neighbours: those three lines keep the comparison honest.
  6. False · Every scheme picks winners and losers. Engineering never decides alone.
  7. Homeowners, councils and neighbours along the shore · Savers, payers and next door beaches all hold a stake in the choice.
  8. The wall moved the problem along the shore · Sand trapped here is sand stolen there. Problems travel along coasts.
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