52
wind strength and direction. Winds generate waves and currents that directly shape coastal
landforms;
• Waves - are the principal source of energy for most coastal systems and develop in response to
wind. Waves colliding with the coast provide the energy needed to move sediment and reshape
shorelines;
• Tides - are the vertical movements of the water level that result from the gravitational forces of the
moon and sun acting on ocean waters. This movement is responsible for the inundation of lowlying coastal land at sub-daily to seasonal timescales. Tides are another major source of marine
energy that shape coastal landforms and play an important role in the transport of coastal
sediments;
• Storms - in Victoria, storms are generally experienced as cold fronts and intense low- pressure systems that pass across the Southern Ocean/Great Australian Bight. Their sharp pressure gradients
generate strong winds and high waves that may lead to erosion of sensitive coastal landforms. Low
air pressure and wind-generated waves may also lead to elevated water levels (storm surges) and
inundation of low-lying coastal land as storm systems pass. Depending upon the timing of the
storm, tides may exacerbate storm surge flooding. Rains generated by storms may also lead to
flooding of land adjacent to coastal rivers and estuaries.
Climate change influences and change these dynamic coastal systems. Sea level rise is considered
to be the biggest threat to coastal areas resulting in increased rates of coastal erosion, more extensive
and frequent coastal flooding, increased intrusion of seawater into estuaries and coastal aquifers,
changing water quality, changing groundwater characteristics and sedimentation, and increased seawater temperatures that may affect ecosystems (DSE, 2012, p. 39).
4.7 Coastal Management & Planning
For many centuries, humans have deliberately exploited the resources of the coast and modified its
environment. Throughout the world ancient civilisations built sea walls and ports, diverted rivers, use
coastal soils for agriculture, and exploited marine life (Kay & Alder, 2005). Activities to preserve
coastal character and its ecological integrity in the timescale of human interventions to the coast are
very recent – as early as the 1930s, when the first protective coastal park was established under the
auspices of ICM (Integrated Coastal Management; Wescott, 1998; Sorensen, 1997). Since then the
concept of coastal management and planning has evolved, and now it is generally accepted that coastal
resources can only be effectively evaluated and managed in the context of a total ecosystem associated
with human cultural and social environments (Roös, 2019; Kay & Alder, 2005).
This concept is key to sustainability, and in coastal management the requirement for sustainable
outcomes has become the dominant paradigm. Sustainable coastal management that includes an
understanding of the social- ecological systems interface is closely linked to sustainable development.
Effectively managing social- ecological systems requires an understanding of the complexity of
human-environmental relationships, defining the pathways toward optimal planning outcomes, and
implementing effective ecosystem-based management practices that support the goals of sustainable
development.
Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Examples of the opposite practice to sustainable development for coastal management, is evident in the state of Victoria, Australia, where the decisionmaking and authority for approvals in the environmental scenario (where developments transverse
public and private land) is a major problem in terms of effective implementation. Macintosh (2012)
concludes in Coastal adaptation planning: A case study on Victoria, Australia that:
…the Victorian framework is based on an awkward distribution of powers and responsibilities. It provides broad
principles that are intended to guide decision- making by planning and responsible authorities, however it does
4 Affinity to Water: The Coastal Zone and Coastal Settlements
wind strength and direction. Winds generate waves and currents that directly shape coastal
landforms;
• Waves - are the principal source of energy for most coastal systems and develop in response to
wind. Waves colliding with the coast provide the energy needed to move sediment and reshape
shorelines;
• Tides - are the vertical movements of the water level that result from the gravitational forces of the
moon and sun acting on ocean waters. This movement is responsible for the inundation of lowlying coastal land at sub-daily to seasonal timescales. Tides are another major source of marine
energy that shape coastal landforms and play an important role in the transport of coastal
sediments;
• Storms - in Victoria, storms are generally experienced as cold fronts and intense low- pressure systems that pass across the Southern Ocean/Great Australian Bight. Their sharp pressure gradients
generate strong winds and high waves that may lead to erosion of sensitive coastal landforms. Low
air pressure and wind-generated waves may also lead to elevated water levels (storm surges) and
inundation of low-lying coastal land as storm systems pass. Depending upon the timing of the
storm, tides may exacerbate storm surge flooding. Rains generated by storms may also lead to
flooding of land adjacent to coastal rivers and estuaries.
Climate change influences and change these dynamic coastal systems. Sea level rise is considered
to be the biggest threat to coastal areas resulting in increased rates of coastal erosion, more extensive
and frequent coastal flooding, increased intrusion of seawater into estuaries and coastal aquifers,
changing water quality, changing groundwater characteristics and sedimentation, and increased seawater temperatures that may affect ecosystems (DSE, 2012, p. 39).
4.7 Coastal Management & Planning
For many centuries, humans have deliberately exploited the resources of the coast and modified its
environment. Throughout the world ancient civilisations built sea walls and ports, diverted rivers, use
coastal soils for agriculture, and exploited marine life (Kay & Alder, 2005). Activities to preserve
coastal character and its ecological integrity in the timescale of human interventions to the coast are
very recent – as early as the 1930s, when the first protective coastal park was established under the
auspices of ICM (Integrated Coastal Management; Wescott, 1998; Sorensen, 1997). Since then the
concept of coastal management and planning has evolved, and now it is generally accepted that coastal
resources can only be effectively evaluated and managed in the context of a total ecosystem associated
with human cultural and social environments (Roös, 2019; Kay & Alder, 2005).
This concept is key to sustainability, and in coastal management the requirement for sustainable
outcomes has become the dominant paradigm. Sustainable coastal management that includes an
understanding of the social- ecological systems interface is closely linked to sustainable development.
Effectively managing social- ecological systems requires an understanding of the complexity of
human-environmental relationships, defining the pathways toward optimal planning outcomes, and
implementing effective ecosystem-based management practices that support the goals of sustainable
development.
Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Examples of the opposite practice to sustainable development for coastal management, is evident in the state of Victoria, Australia, where the decisionmaking and authority for approvals in the environmental scenario (where developments transverse
public and private land) is a major problem in terms of effective implementation. Macintosh (2012)
concludes in Coastal adaptation planning: A case study on Victoria, Australia that:
…the Victorian framework is based on an awkward distribution of powers and responsibilities. It provides broad
principles that are intended to guide decision- making by planning and responsible authorities, however it does
4 Affinity to Water: The Coastal Zone and Coastal Settlements