Understanding the recession of the Holderness Coast, east Yorkshire, UK: a new presentation of temporal and spatial patterns

<strong>Abstract</strong> The Holderness coastline is known to be one of the most rapidly retreating coastal regions in Europe. Previous studies on the recession of this coastline have often concentrated on providing a single annual value for the whole coast or for large subdivisions of it; however, relatively little attention has been given to the overall spatial and temporal variability. This paper summarizes and critically appraises the work previously undertaken in this region, presents the results of the former recession rate investigations and displays new interpretations of the data. This assessment found there to be a knowledge gap relating to the processes involved in the recession of this coastline, particularly with regard to frequency of high recession events, further knowledge of which could assist in the planning of the region. It is concluded that many of the former investigations are inadequate by today's standards, because of either the methods employed or the manner in which the results are displayed. Significant steps in gathering high-quality data relating to the erosion of this coastline have been made by the East Riding of Yorkshire Council with the initiation of their Erosion Post monitoring scheme and more recently by their dGPS monitoring. However, if further advancement is to be made in the understanding of the erosion of this region, this work will need to be supplemented with geomorphological monitoring of the cliff line, which will further resolve the processes occurring and aid the production of predictive models. These geomorphological data could be obtained through employment of traditional methods as well as new techniques such as laser scanning or digital photogrammetry.

摘要 霍尔尼兹海岸（Holderness coastline）是欧洲海岸侵蚀后退速率最快的沿海区域之一。过往针对该海岸侵蚀后退的研究，多聚焦于给出整个海岸或其大型分区的单一年度后退数值，但对整体时空变异性的关注相对不足。本文对该区域此前开展的相关研究进行了系统梳理与批判性评价，呈现了既往海岸后退速率调查的成果，并给出了对数据集的全新解读。本次评估发现，该海岸侵蚀后退过程相关的研究存在研究空白，尤以高后退幅度事件的发生频率为甚；厘清此类细节可为该区域的规划工作提供有效支撑。研究表明，受限于所采用的研究方法或结果呈现方式，既往多数研究已无法满足当前的学术标准。约克郡东赖丁区议会（East Riding of Yorkshire Council）通过启动其侵蚀点位监测方案（Erosion Post monitoring scheme），以及近年开展的差分全球定位系统（differential GPS, dGPS）监测，在获取该海岸侵蚀高质量数据方面取得了重要进展。然而，若要进一步深化对该区域侵蚀过程的认知，还需补充针对崖岸线的地貌监测工作，以此更清晰地解析当前发生的侵蚀过程，并助力预测模型的构建。此类地貌数据可通过传统调查方法，结合激光扫描、数字摄影测量等新兴技术获取。