Tourism's impact on the Hengistbury Head and Mudeford Spit Area
Hypothesis
The hypothesis that my group have chosen to investigate is:
"Tourism has impacted along the Hengistbury
Head and Mudeford Spit area. This has resulted
In more coastal problems."
Throughout this piece of coursework, I will gather information from
sources to either agree, or disagree with my chosen hypothesis.
These are the areas that I will be investigating:
· Tourist Facilities
· Reasons why tourist facilities are needed
· The coastal defences
· Damage done to the coast - natural and human
· Effects damage has done to the landscape
· Cost Vs Revenue
I am also going to be expanding this hypothesis by also investigating
the impact that tourism has done to the Highcliff high street and
Highcliff beach area.
Method
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For this piece of coursework, need to gather information to either
agree or disagree with my chosen hypothesis.
I am going to gather information by going to the Hengistbury Head and
Mudeford Spit area. To collect the information there I'm going to be
using a number of resources. I will be using a camera to take pictures
of the tourist facilities and the costal defences. Also I will do a
number of sketches of the landscape to show the damage done by erosion
and weathering. I am going to do a land use survey of the shops on
Highcliff high street to make a list of the shops that are there.
I will then use the Internet, textbooks and various handouts to
research other general information about the Highcliff and Hengistbury
Head area.
I am also going to be writing and investigating the schemes being used
on the areas to try an prolong the life of the Headland, which will
inevitably separate from the mainland due to the effects of erosion
and weathering, and what is being done to stop this happening.
Costal Protections
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On and around Hengistbury Head, there are many examples of the costal
defences and prevention of costal erosion and weathering by the sea.
Here is a list of all the protection schemes and how they work.
* Gabions - Steel mesh cages containing large pebbles, built onto
the cliff face above a seawall. These pebbles absorb and take the
force of the pressure applied by the waves to cut down erosion.
These are cheap and fairly effective, but they are ugly and
un-natural to look at.
* Groynes - These can be wooden or stone structures placed along the
length of the beach at regular intervals and at right angles to
the beach. They can be anything from 50 meters out to sea. They
are designed to stop long shore drift, but they also stop new
beach material reaching other beaches.
* Boulders - Boulders piled up on beaches where erosion of cliffs is
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