2B.11 Hard and soft engineering responses to coastal risk Quiz: Pearson Edexcel Geography, Unit 3

The 20 questions

1. Which of the following coastal defence strategies is classified as hard engineering?

   • Rip rap
   • Cliff re-grading
   • Beach nourishment
   • Dune stabilisation

2. Which of these is a soft engineering approach to coastal management?

   • Offshore breakwaters
   • Beach nourishment
   • Groynes
   • Revetments

3. What is a primary characteristic of hard engineering coastal management structures?

   • High economic costs
   • Promoting natural drift
   • Low construction costs
   • Minimal landscape impact

4. What material is primarily used to construct coastal rip rap defences?

   • Large rock boulders
   • Steel sheet piling
   • Wooden timber posts
   • Permeable geotextiles

5. What is the primary function of an offshore breakwater in coastal management?

   • Drain cliff water
   • Trap longshore drift
   • Reduce wave energy
   • Bind dune sand

6. Which category of coastal management includes cliff re-grading and drainage?

   • Hard engineering
   • Soft engineering
   • Managed retreat
   • Holistic ICZM

7. What negative impact often occurs downdrift after constructing a coastal groyne?

   • Decreased cliff failure
   • Increased beach erosion
   • Reduced wave height
   • Increased sediment deposition

8. Why does beach nourishment require regular, repeated maintenance over time?

   • Reduced wave energy
   • Natural sediment transport
   • Rapid sea-level fall
   • Permanent rock erosion

9. Which coastal defence approach directly aims to work alongside natural physical processes?

   • Soft engineering
   • Hard engineering
   • Grey infrastructure
   • Structural engineering

10. Why do sustainable coastal management decisions often cause local community conflicts?

    • Zero environmental impact
    • Universal financial gains
    • Equal protection everywhere
    • Disagreements over land-loss

11. What wave action causes significant beach scour at the base of a seawall?

    • Sub-aerial weathering
    • Cliff drainage
    • Sand dune deflation
    • Wave reflection

12. Which hard engineering defence is specifically designed to dissipate wave energy?

    • Beach recharge
    • Dune fencing
    • Cliff drainage
    • Rip rap

13. Compared to hard engineering, what advantage does soft engineering offer against rising sea levels?

    • Greater environmental flexibility
    • Complete erosion prevention
    • Permanent rigid barrier
    • Zero maintenance costs

14. Why does implementing sustainable coastal management often cause local conflicts?

    • Differing stakeholder priorities
    • Lack of technology
    • Decreased storm risk
    • Universal economic gain

15. How do sea walls directly impact coastal physical processes?

    • Natural cliff drainage
    • Reflected wave energy
    • Increased dune growth
    • Enhanced sediment deposition

16. Why must coastal engineering decisions be coordinated across a whole littoral cell?

    • Interconnected sediment budgets
    • Fixed sea levels
    • Uniform wave climate
    • Identical land values

17. Which engineering approach works with natural processes to adapt to rising sea levels?

    • Hard engineering
    • Offshore breakwaters
    • Soft engineering
    • Structural revetments

18. What is a physical consequence of installing groynes along a coastline?

    • Increased longshore drift
    • Dune blowout stabilization
    • Salt marsh creation
    • Downdrift beach starvation

19. Why do local interest groups often disagree on choosing coastal engineering schemes?

    • Equal flood risk
    • Identical land values
    • Differing cost-benefit perceptions
    • Identical economic goals

20. Which engineering feature directly protects high-value infrastructure like ports from wave action?

    • Beach nourishment
    • Dune stabilisation
    • Cliff drainage
    • Offshore breakwaters

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