Term
1. (9 points)
a. Of the three rock types, which is typically the easiest to erode? |
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Definition
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Term
| 2. (3 points) Explain why bluffs erode at a very uneven rate over time…why don’t they erode the same amount each year? |
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Definition
| The eroded material adjacent to a bluff (e.g., a landslide block) must be removed before a bluff can be exposed to new erosion. The amount of time it takes to remove this old material varies. In addition, some forces that cause bluff erosion are themselves episodic (e.g., storms). Finally, the material that the bluff is made of can vary, in turn controlling its erodibility. |
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Term
3. (10 points) a. List four places estuarine sediment can come from (sources).
b. Which is most important in Maine estuaries? |
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Definition
1. biological (CaCO3)
2. margins (bluffs)
3. offshore
4. rivers
b. margins (bluffs) |
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Term
| 4. (3 points) Provide two reasons why estuaries, and not deltas, dominate the US East Coast? |
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Definition
| The East Coast has: (1) very large embayments, and (2) a small sediment load in the rivers. With a large embayment and a small sediment load, the embayment never fills up, so an estuary rather than a delta is built. |
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Term
| 5. (9 points) List three general options a homeowner on a rapidly eroding bluff has to save his or her house. |
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Definition
1. relocate
2. accommodate
3. armor |
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Term
| 6. (6 points) In a salt wedge estuary, also called a stratified estuary, how does the circulation of the water trap sediment? Use a drawing, if possible. |
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Definition
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