Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Includes bibliographical references at the end of each chapters and index.

1 River Deltas -- Occurrence and Distribution of Deltas -- General Characteristics of Deltas and Deltaic Environments -- Delta-Forming Processes -- Deltaic Sediments and Sedimentary Structures -- Variability of Deltaic Geometries and Depositional Sequences -- Summary -- References -- 2 Coastal Bays -- Kinds of Estuaries -- Processes of Suspended Sediment Transport -- Processes Affecting the Accumulation of Suspended Sediments -- Source, Character, and Fate of Suspended Matter in Estuaries -- Bottom Sediments in Estuaries -- Selected Examples -- Sedimentary Structures -- References -- 3 Coastal Salt Marshes -- The State of the Art -- Definition and Occurrences of Coastal Salt Marshes -- Environmental Conditions and Marsh Zonation -- Characteristic Plants -- Characteristic Sediments -- Substrate Characteristics and Biogeochemistry -- Processes Affecting Sedimentation in Salt Marshes -- Sedimentary Structures -- Epilog -- References -- 4 Coastal Dunes -- Coastal Sand Dunes -- Physical Processes of Eolian Sedimentation -- Artificially Inseminated Coastal Sand Dunes -- References -- 5 Beach and Nearshore Zone -- Distribution -- Geometry -- Beach Materials -- Processes -- Sedimentary Structures -- Process-Response Systems in the Beach and Nearshore Environment -- References -- 6 Mesotidal Inlets and Estuaries -- Bedforms -- Genesis of Estuarine Bedforms -- Tidal Deltas -- Stratigraphic Sequences and Depositional Models -- References -- 7 Coastal Stratigraphic Sequences -- Processes of Change -- Sedimentary Sequences -- The Transgressive Shoreline -- Galveston and Regressive Shorelines -- Sequences -- Delta-Chenier Plains -- Coastal Sequences in Time and Space -- The Uses of Vertical Sequence Analysis -- References -- 8 Modeling Coastal Environments -- Geometric Model -- Statistical Models -- Markov Model -- Probabilistic Model -- Deterministic Model -- Fourier Model -- Summary -- References.

Richard A. Davis The zone where land and sea meet is composed of a variety of complex environ­ ments. The coastal areas of the world contain a large percentage of its population and are therefore of extreme economic importance. Industrial, residential, and recreational developments, as well as large urban complexes, occupy much of the coastal margin of most highly developed countries. Undoubtedly future expan­ sion in many undeveloped maritime countries will also be concentrated on coastal areas. Accompanying our occupation of coasts in this age of technology is a dependence on coastal environments for transportation, food, water, defense, and recreation. In order to utilize the coastal zone to its capacity, and yet not plunder its resources, we must have extensive knowledge of the complex environ­ ments contained along the coasts. The many environments within the coastal zone include bays, estuaries, deltas, marshes, dunes, and beaches. A tremendously broad range of conditions is represented by these environments. Salinity may range from essentially fresh water in estuaries, such as along the east coast of the United States, to extreme hypersaline lagoons, such as Laguna Madre in Texas. Coastal environments may be in excess of a hundred meters deep (fjords) or may extend several meters above sea level in the form of dunes. Some coastal environments are well protected and are not subjected to high physical energy except for occasional storms, whereas beaches and tidal inlets are continuously modified by waves and currents.

English