Coastal Dynamics and Impact of Coastal Protection Works on the Spurn Head Spit (United Kingdom)

The erosion of the glacial tills along the Holderness Coast (eastern England) has released material which has led to the formation of a 4.5 km sand and gravel spit, Spurn Head, across the mouth of the Humber estuary. This paper examines the sedimentology and geomorphology of the spit and of the tidal flat behind it (Spurn Bight), and assesses the effects of coastal defences on the nearshore dynamics. A study of the coastal dynamics was carried out by analysing wind data and modelling wave shoaling and refraction at the estuary mouth, and on the tidal flat. The geomorphology and sedimentology of the beaches and the tidal flat were studied to assess the response of the spit system to different weather conditions. The results show that only 6% of the longshore drift produced by cliff erosion in Holderness is transported along Spurn Head, mainly by waves from the north and the north-east. This drift is stored in an area of sand and gravel banks at the tip. Medium-size sand is carried aroun...