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Lessons 12-13
Sometimes waves do not come straight up onto the b _ _ _ _. They come from whatever
direction the w _ _ _ has blown them. In the UK the wind direction is often
fairly similar all the year. The beach gets washed along as in the

above diagram. When this happens seaside towns protect their
beaches by building fences, or groynes, at regular intervals
along the beach. They slow down the speed at which the beach is washed away.

d) Building beaches

Sand dunes: Waves that build up beaches move sand high up the beach especially

in storms. The sand can dry out and is easily blown into small hills called s _ _ _
d _ _ _ _ , eg Studland in Dorset. In Poland these hills reach 300 metres high.

Sand banks: Waves can tear down beaches and the beach material can drift along the coast.

Eventually this sand is dropped and new land is created, forming features such as a spit, a
tombolo or a sand bar.

A tombolo is a stretch of sand or shingle linking an island to the mainland as
at Chesil beach in Dorset.

A spit is a length
of sand or shingle

which protrudes
out into the sea
but which is
joined to the land
at one end.

Arrows show the
wind direction.

A bar is a long stretch of sand or shingle that joins together two headlands. A

lagoon usually forms behind the bar, eg Slapton Ley in Devon.

(God's Amazing Landscapes) 50