Associate Professor Jim Peterson
4 points - 2.5 hours per week on average (2 lectures and 1 lecture and a 2-hour practical in alternate weeks) - Second semester - Clayton - Prerequisites: A first-year sequence in geography, or permission of the head of department - Prohibited combination GES2150 and GES2160
Objectives Upon completion of this subject students should be able to show that they understand the nature of environmental (in)stability on coasts and the application of coastal science to planning and management.
Synopsis Coastal changes since the end of the last glacial stage have been great and much interest centres on the nature of environmental stability and the relative role of catastrophic events, natural change and fluctuation, and of economic development in determining the pattern of geographical variation in coastal landform evolution. Studies of such topics lead to an assessment of the importance of an understanding of the nature of environmental stability to modern resources management in the coastal zone.
Assessment Written (1000 words): 33% - Examination (2 hours): 33% - Practical work/fieldwork: 34%
Prescribed texts
Bird E C F Coasts 3rd edn, ANU Press, 1984 or
Viles H and Spencer T Coastal problems Edward Arnold, 1995