Investigating

Coasts

Coasts

Human Activity on Coasts

How do we use coasts?

People use coasts in many different ways. Some people move to the coast to live beside the sea, and a lot of people visit coastal areas on their holidays, both in this country and abroad. Therefore, coasts are tourist attractions.

Why do tourists go to the coast?

People go to the coast on their holidays to see somewhere different, especially if they live in towns, and inland areas. The coast provides holiday resorts by the sea, which have many tourist activities, such as swimming and water sports.

What effect do tourists have on coasts?

POSITIVE:

• Tourists bring a lot of money to local businesses, e.g. restaurants, hotels and shops.
• The tourism industry provides employment for local people, especially during the peak season.
• Tourism promotes the local coastal area.
• It brings new and modern facilities to the area, benefiting tourists and residents.

• The increased number of people can cause traffic problems and pollution.
• Tourists litter the coastal environment, e.g. rubbish washed into the sea and put on the beaches.
• The large amount of people put pressure on the land, for example by trampling.
• The building of new facilities for tourists, disturbs the natural environment.

What effect to residents have in coastal areas?

Living by the coast is believed to be good for you, because of the fresh sea air but there are problems too. On some coasts, people have built housing on cliff tops. This has an effect on the coastal environment as it puts pressure on the land. The sea is very powerful and erodes cliffs, weakening them. With the extra pressure on the cliff top, the cliff is more likely to collapse. This is very dangerous for those people living on the cliff top. This has happened and it can be very costly. In 1993, a hotel in Scarborough collapsed into the sea, costing the company a lot of money.