Abstract
Southeastern Australia has an embayed, high-energy coast in which embayments show varying degrees of infilling with ‘fluvial’ and ‘marine’ sediments. Three primary types of Holocene embayment fill are recognized: ‘open ocean’, ‘barrier estuary’ and ‘drowned river valley’. An evolutionary model is proposed to account for their various stages of development. Rapid accumulation of marine sand in mid-Holocene times resulted in the formation of coastal sand barriers and of estuaries that progressively infilled with fluvial/estuarine deposits. In the Late Holocene, there is strong evidence that erosion has dominated over accretion: sandy bays have deepened and many barriers have retreated. Our model predicts that, with extreme or prolonged wave erosion, barriers may be destroyed and estuarine deposits reworked to produce mixed ‘fluvial’/‘marine’ sediments. Similar polygenetic sediments are produced when an estuary completely infills and river sand is supplied to the coast. In such cases coastal erosion may be countered or reversed.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
