Geographical Issues in the Coastal Environment- 7.1 Activities Questions

1.       The settlement pattern of Australia is related to issues in the coastal environment because buildings or skyscrapers being next to the coast or the beach mean there would be 85% of the population living within just 50km of the coastal zone.

2.       The sustainable development of the coastline is the aim of coastal management strategies because people may ruin or help turn the coast into a dangerous and unhygenic place to be.

3.    The trend called 'Sea Change' is overdevelopment and rapid growth of coastal areas occur due to the current Australian trend for people to move from large cities to smaller coastal towns and villages where the lifestyle is more relaxed.

4.    The government response to 'sea change' was that some towns along the east coast of Australia have imposed residential caps or a population ceiling for their town in an effort to stop overdevelopment of the area.

5.     Pollution- Humans are a big problem when it comes to pollution because people just litter;    not all people do but most do. When people go to the beach they buy food from the fast food stores around there or they bring their own but it still ends up in the same place, next to the water and sometimes the sea takes the rubbish out to sea and animals try and eat it and die.

        Tourism and Recreational pressures- The coasts are popular destinations for residents and tourism. Tourist developments and resorts are concentrated in particular areas along the coast. The places can increase or double especially during holiday times, which places pressure on the infrastructure and environment of the area.  

        Population Growth- With the population growing, it will cause overdevelopment and rapid growth of coastal areas, which will make the beaches overcrowded and all the infrastructure around it will weaken and hazards may occur.

        Introduced Plants- Areas along the coast have been invaded by introduced plants. The bitou bush was introduced into Australia from South Africa in 1908 to help the sand dunes but they do not give the dunes enough protection from wind erosion than the native plants do.

6.     Geographers play quite a huge role in the developing management solutions as they are the one that know whats going on or whats happening and so they tell or report to the governments to try and fix the problem that the coast may be facing whether it be pollution or sand dune erosion.