Term |
Definition |
Accretion |
Accumulation of sand or other beach material due to the natural action
of waves, currents and wind. |
Advance the Line |
An SMP policy option
that allows for the building of new defences on the seaward side of
the original defences. |
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) |
Designated by Natural England, the purpose of this statutory
designation is to identify areas of national importance and to promote
the conservation and enhancement of natural beauty. This includes
protecting its flora, fauna, geological and landscape features
. |
Armour |
Structural protection (rock or concrete) for the shoreline.
|
Back beach/ Back Shore
|
The section of beach extending landwards from the high water mark to
the point where there is an abrupt change in slope or material; also
referred to as the backshore. |
Bar |
Fully or partially submerged mound of sand, gravel or other
unconsolidated material built on the sea-bottom in shallow water by
waves and currents. |
Beach face
|
Upper surface of the beach. |
Beach nourishment |
Artificial process of replenishing a beach with material from another
source. Also referred to as beach renourishment and beach
recharge. |
Beach profile
|
Side view of a beach extending from the top of the dune line into the
sea. |
Berm crest
|
Ridge of sand or gravel deposited by wave action on the shore just
above the normal high water mark. |
Biodiversity Action Plan |
A national action plan for a key habitat or species, approved by
Government, as part of the overall UK Biodiversity Action Plan. |
Brackish water
|
Freshwater mixed with seawater. |
Breaker
|
A wave as it collapses on a shore. |
Breaker zone
|
Area in the sea where the waves break. |
Catchment Flood Management Plan |
Large scale strategic planning framework for the integrated management
of flood risk to people and the developed and natural environment in a
sustainable manner. Broadly equivalent to an SMP, based on drainage
catchments, and prepared by the Environment Agency. |
Coastal Defence
|
A term used to encompass both coastal protection against erosion and
sea defence against flooding. |
Coastal Defence Strategy Plan
|
A detailed assessment of the strategic coastal defence option(s) for a
management unit(s), based on Flood and Coastal Defence Project
Appraisal Guidance 2. |
Coastal Habitat Management Plan (CHaMP) |
A non-statutory management plan which
quantifies coastal habitat change, (loss and
gain), and recommended measures to prevent future losses
to a European designated site or group of sites. |
Coastal squeeze
|
The progressive reduction and loss of coastal habitat area and natural
features which can arise if the natural landward migration of a
habitat under sea level rise is prevented by man-made defences and
structures. |
Coastal Zone Management Plan
|
Plans through which local authorities and others implement planning
objectives and policies for an area of the coast, which deal with a
range of issues such as landscape management, development, recreation,
conservation, etc. |
Concern |
This is a stated actual or perceived problem, raised by an individual
or stakeholder. A concern can be strategic or local. |
Consequence |
An outcome or impact such as economic, social or environmental impact.
It may be expressed as a quantity (e.g. monetary value), categorical
(e.g. high, medium, low) or descriptive (see FCDPAG4). |
Conservation |
The political/social/economic process by which the environment is
protected and resources are used wisely. |
Compact Airborne Spectrographic Imager (CASI)
|
A remote sensing technique usually deployed in a light aircraft for
the purposes of classifying land usage and habitat type. |
Deep water
|
Area where surface waves are not influenced by the sea-bottom.
|
Downdrift |
Direction of alongshore movement of beach materials. |
Downdrift effects
|
Impacts occurring in the lee of any coastal activity resulting from
associated changes to the coastal processes, particularly sediment
supply. |
Dredging |
Excavation, digging, scraping, draglining, suction dredging to remove
sand, silt, rock or other underwater sea-bottom material. |
Dune |
Accumulations of wind-blown sand in ridges or mounds that lie landward
of the beach and usually parallel to the shoreline. |
Ebb-tide
|
The falling tide, part of the tidal cycle between high water and the
next low water. |
Economic Appraisal
|
An appraisal which takes into account a wide range of costs and
benefits, generally those that can be valued in money terms. |
Ecosystem |
Organization of the biological community and the physical environment
in a specific geographical area. |
Environment
|
Where environmental issues are referred to, this term is used to
encompass landscape/natural beauty, flora, fauna, geological or
geomorphological features and buildings, sites and objects of
archaeological, architectural or historical interest. |
Environmental Impact Assessment
|
Detailed studies which predict the effects of a development project on
the environment. They also provide plans for mitigation of the adverse
impacts. |
Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA)
|
This is an area where special land management payments are available
through agreement with Defra to provide farming practices which are
beneficial to the environment. This is a non-statutory designation. |
Erosion |
The loss of land or encroachment by the sea through a combination of
natural forces e.g. wave attack, slope processes, high groundwater
levels. |
Estuary
|
Mouth of a river, where fresh river water mixes with the seawater.
|
European Site
|
Any site that has been designated as a site of international nature
conservation importance either as a Special Protection Area (SPA), a
Special Area of Conservation (SAC) or a Ramsar Site. In regard
to planning considerations it is Government policy to treat potential
SPAs, candidate SACs and listed Ramsar Sites as if they were already
designated. |
Feature |
Something tangible that provides a service to society in one form or
another or, more simply, benefits certain aspects of society by its
very existence. This will be of a specific geographical location and
specific to the SMP. |
Fetch |
Area of water where waves are generated by the wind. |
Flooding |
Refers to inundation by water whether this is caused by breaches,
overtopping of banks or defences, or by inadequate or slow drainage of
rainfall or underlying ground water levels. Flooding due to blocked
drains and sewers or the escape of water from a water supply service
will usually be the responsibility of the local water company and does
not fall within the scope of a Shoreline Management Plan. |
Flood-tide
|
Rising tide, part of the tidal cycle between low water and the next
high water. |
Foreshore |
Zone between the high water and low water marks. |
Gabions
|
Wire mesh rectangular containers filled with stones. |
Geomorphology |
The study of landforms and land forming processes. |
Greenhouse effect
|
Heating of the earth's atmosphere due to an increase in gases like
carbon dioxide. |
Groyne
|
Shore protection structure built perpendicular to the shore; designed
to trap sediment. |
Groyne field
|
Series of groynes acting together to protect a section of beach.
|
Habitat Action Plan |
A biodiversity action plan for a habitat. |
Habitat Directive |
EC Directive 92/43 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild
fauna and flora. |
Habitat Regulations |
The conservation (Natural Habitats & c.) Regulations 1994. This
transposes the Habitats Directive into UK Law. |
Hazard |
A situation with the potential to result in harm. A hazard does not
necessarily lead to harm. |
Hold the Line |
An SMP policy option
that involves maintaining or changing the standard of protection
provided by the existing defence line by carrying out work in front of
existing defences (such as beach replenishment, rebuilding the toe of
a structure, building offshore breakwaters, etc). |
IROPI |
Imperative Reasons for Overriding Public Interest. |
Issue |
All issues and aspirations are related to flood and coastal defence
and grouped or categorised under the three main themes: Technical;
Environmental; or Socio-economic. |
Key Stakeholder
|
A person or organisation with a major interest in the preparation of,
and outcomes from, a shoreline management plan. This includes
agencies, authorities, organisations and private bodies with
responsibilities or ownerships that affect the overall management of
the shoreline in a plan. |
Land reclamation
|
Process of creating new, dry land on the seabed. |
Longshore current
|
A movement of water parallel to the shore, caused by waves.
|
Longshore transport
|
Movement of material parallel to the shore, also referred to as
longshore drift. |
Managed realignment
|
An SMP policy option
that allows the shoreline to move backwards or forwards, with
management to control or limit movement (such as reducing erosion or
building new defences on the landward or seaward side of the original
defences). |
Mean sea level
|
Average height of the sea surface over a 19-year period. |
Maritime local authorities |
Maritime local authorities have certain
permissive powers under the Coast Protection Act 1949 to undertake
works to defend the coastline from erosion by the sea (coast
protection). |
Mean High Water (MHW)
|
The average of all high waters observed over a sufficiently long
period. |
Mean Low Water (MLW)
|
The average of all low waters observed over a sufficiently long
period. |
National Nature Reserve (NNR)
|
Sites designated under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 by
Natural England. These represent some of the most important natural
and semi-natural ecosystems in Great Britain, and are managed to
protect the conservation value of the habitats that occur on these
sites. Statutory designation. |
No
Active Intervention |
An SMP policy
option that
means no
investment will be made in coastal defences or other operations other
than for safety purposes. |
Non-Statutory |
Not required by law. |
Objective |
An objective is set, through consultation with key parties, to
encourage the resolution of the issue or range of issues. It is a
desired state to be achieved in the future. |
Offshore breakwater
|
Structure parallel to the shore, usually positioned in the sea, which
protects the shore from waves. |
Offshore zone
|
Extends from the low water mark to a water depth of about 15 m (49 ft)
and is permanently covered with water. |
Operating authority
|
A body with statutory powers to undertake flood defence or coast
protection activities, usually the Environment Agency or maritime
District
or Borough
Council. |
PDZ
|
Policy Development Zone (introduced during the SMP review 2009-2010),
replaces the Process Units of SMP1. |
Pile
|
Long heavy section of timber, concrete or metal, driven into the
ground or seabed as support for another structure. |
Policy |
In this context, "policy" refers to the generic shoreline management
options (No Active Intervention, Hold the Existing Line of Defence,
Managed Realignment and Advance the Existing Line of Defence).
|
Policy Scenario
|
The combinations of policies selected against the various feature /
benefit objectives for the whole SMP frontage. |
PV |
Present Value. The value of a stream of benefits or costs when
discounted back to the present day. For this SMP the discount factors
used are the latest provided by Defra for assessment of schemes, i.e.
3.5% for years 0-30, 3.0% for years 31-75, and 2.5% thereafter.
|
Ramsar |
Designated under the 1971 Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of
International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat. The
objective of this designation is to stem the progressive encroachment
onto, and loss of wetlands. |
Residual life
|
The time to when a defence is no longer able to achieve minimum
acceptable performance criteria in terms of serviceability or
structural strength. |
Residual risk
|
The risk which remains after risk management and mitigation. It may
include, for example, risk due to very severe storms (above design
standard) or risks from unforeseen hazards. |
Retaining wall
|
Wall built to hold back the earth. |
Revetment |
Shore protection structure made with stones/ rock laid on a sloping
face. |
Risk assessment
|
Consideration of risks to people and the developed, historic and
natural environment. |
Risk management
|
The activity of mitigating and monitoring risks. |
Special Areas of Conservation (SACs)
|
Designated under the EC Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC Conservation of
Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora), this designation aims
to protect habitats or species of European importance and can include
Marine Areas, and form part of the Natura 2000 site network. All SACs
sites are also protected as SSSI, except those in the marine
environment below Mean Low Water. |
Scheduled Ancient Monuments (SAM)
|
The main legislation concerning archaeology in the UK is the Ancient
Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. This Act, building on
legislation dating back to 1882, provides for nationally important
archaeological sites to be statutorily protected as Scheduled Ancient
Monuments. |
Schedule IV |
'Waters excluded for purposes of definitions of 'sea' and 'seashore''
(refer to Coast Protection Act, 1949). |
Scour |
Removal of underwater material by waves or currents, especially at the
toe of a shore protection structure. |
Seawall |
Massive structure built along the shore to prevent erosion and damage
by wave action. |
Sediment |
Particles of rock covering a size range from clay to boulders.
|
Sediment cell
|
A length of coastline and its associated near shore area within which
the movement of coarse sediment (sand and shingle) is largely self
contained. Interruptions to the movement of sand and shingle within
one cell should not affect beaches in an adjacent sediment cell. |
Sediment sub-cell
|
A sub-set of a sediment cell within which the movement of coarse
sediment (sand and shingle) is relatively self contained. |
Setback
|
Prescribed distance landward of a coastal feature (e.g. the line of
existing defences). |
Shore
|
Narrow strip of land in immediate contact with the sea. |
Shoreline
|
Intersection of a specific water height with the shore or beach, e.g.
the high water shoreline is the intersection of the high water mark
with the shore or beach. |
Shoreline management policy
|
Generic term for any management option, e.g. no active intervention,
limited intervention, advance, realign or hold the existing coastal
defence line. |
Significant effect
|
Where a plan or project is likely to affect a European Site it is
necessary to decide whether or not it would have a significant effect.
If there is any doubt, the operating authority must consult English
Nature/Countryside Council for Wales. They will advise whether, in
their view, the proposed scheme would be likely to have a significant
effect. |
Siltation |
Deposition of silt-sized particles. |
Sensitive Marine Area (SMA)
|
A generic term used to describe nationally important locations around
our coast which require a cautious and detailed approach to
management. They are identified by Natural England for their important
benthic populations, spawning or nursery areas for fish, fragile
intertidal communities, or breeding, feeding, and roosting areas for
birds and sea mammals. This is a non-statutory designation.
|
Shoreline Management Plan (SMP)
|
It provides a large-scale assessment of the risks associated with
coastal processes and presents a policy framework to reduce these
risks to people and the developed, historic and natural environment in
a sustainable manner. |
Site of Nature Conservation Importance (SNCI)
|
These sites are defined by the Wildlife Trusts and Local Authorities
as sites of local nature conservation interest. These are
non-statutory but form an integral part of the formulation of planning
policies relating to nature conservation issues. |
Special Protection Areas (SPAs) |
Designated under the EC Birds Directive (79/409/EEC Conservation of
Wild Birds), these are internationally important sites, being set up
to establish a network of protected areas of birds. Statutory
designation. |
Spit |
Accretionary deposit of sand or stones
located where a shoreline changes direction, formed by wave action and
joined to the shore at one end only. |
Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs)
|
These sites, notified by Natural England, represent some of the best
examples of Britain's natural features including flora, fauna, and
geology. This is a statutory designation. designated for their
wildlife and/or Earth heritage interest under the Wildlife and
Countryside Act 1981. |
Stakeholder |
A person or organisation with an interest in the preparation of a
shoreline management plan or affected by the policies produced. This
broad interpretation has been taken to include agencies, authorities,
organisations and private
individuals.
Also
see "Key stakeholder". |
Storm surge
|
A rise in the sea surface on an open coast, resulting from a storm.
|
Strategic |
Used to describe the undertaking of any process in a holistic manner
taking account of all associated impacts, interests of other parties
and considering the widest possible set of potential options for the
solution of a problem. In the context of this document, the word
'strategic' does not imply any particular level in the hierarchy of
the planning process. |
Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) |
A process of systematically appraising the environmental opportunities
and constraints of a project, and identifying and managing its
implications. SEA is a statutory requirement of certain plans and
programmes, under the Environmental Assessment of Plans and Programmes
Regulations 2004. |
Sustainable policies
|
Sustainable policies lead to coastal defence solutions that avoid
tying future generations into inflexible and/or expensive options for
defence. They will usually include consideration of interrelationships
with other defences and likely developments and processes within a
coastal cell or sub-cell. They will also take account of long-term
demands for non-renewable materials. |
Swell |
Waves that have travelled out of the area in which they were
generated. |
Tidal current
|
Movement of water in a constant direction caused by the periodic
rising and falling of the tide. As the tide rises, a flood-tidal
current moves in one direction and as the tide falls, the ebb-tidal
current moves in the opposite direction. |
Tidal inlet
|
A river mouth or narrow gap between islands, within which salt water
moves landwards during a rising tide. |
Tidal prism
|
The volume of water within the estuary between the level of high and
low tide, typically taken for mean spring tides. |
Tide |
Periodic rising and falling of large bodies of water resulting from
the gravitational attraction of the moon and sun acting on the
rotating earth. |
Toe protection
|
Material, usually large boulders, placed at the base of a sea defence
structure like a seawall to prevent wave scour. |
Topography |
Configuration of a surface including its relief and the position of
its natural and man-made features. |
Updrift
|
Direction opposite to the predominant movement of longshore transport.
|
Wave direction
|
Direction from which a wave approaches. |
Wave refraction
|
Process by which the direction of approach of a wave changes as it
moves into shallow water. |
Wetlands
|
Low-lying areas that are frequently flooded and which support
vegetation adapted to saturated soils e.g. mangrove swamps.
|