For the Instructor
These student materials complement the Coastal Processes, Hazards and Society Instructor Materials. If you would like your students to have access to the student materials, we suggest you either point them at the Student Version which omits the framing pages with information designed for faculty (and this box). Or you can download these pages in several formats that you can include in your course website or local Learning Managment System. Learn more about using, modifying, and sharing InTeGrate teaching materials.Tide Dominated Coasts
Tide dominated coasts are those where strong tidal currents act to redistribute sediment along the vector of falling and rise tidal currents, which are orientated perpendicular to the trend of the coastline (Fig. 2.22). Quite often the highest energy tidal currents develop in locations where large tidal ranges are present in conjunction with a shoreline morphology that accentuates tidal flow by constricting tidal currents into funnel-shaped embayments. Sediment is reworked by the resulting tidal currents to create subaerial and subaqueous tidal shoals and islands that are aligned parallel to the tidal flow direction, perpendicular to the coastline. Moreover, in areas with very large tidal ranges, extensive tidal flats and marsh or mangrove systems form along the borders of the embayment and can cover large areas (Fig. 2.23).
Figure 2.22. 1:250,000 scale map of the Fly River delta in Papua New Guinea. The islands that are aligned perpendicular to the coastline are the result of tidal currents reworking sediment delivered to the area by the Fly River. The spring tidal range at the mouth of the Fly River is as much as 5 m.
Figure 2.23: Muddy tidal flat in Schleswig-Holstein Wadden Sea National Park of northern Germany. This area represents some of the most continuous tidal flats on Earth and is part of a UNESCO World Heritage site. Although the tidal range here is only approximately 2 m, the low gradient of the coastal zone means that large areas can be exposed during falling or ebbing tide and covered by water during rising or flooding tides. Credit: Wikipedia: Tidal Flats (public domain)



