Coastal geomorphology, changing sea levels and the vulnerability of coastal regions

Duration

20h Th, 10h Pr, 3d FW

Number of credits

Lecturer

Aurelia Hubert

Language(s) of instruction

French language

Organisation and examination

Teaching in the second semester

Schedule

Schedule online

Units courses prerequisite and corequisite

Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program

Learning unit contents

The course Coastal Geomorphology, Sea-Level Change and Coastal Vulnerability is divided in 8 parts.
1. Introduction to Coastal Systems

• Definitions, main coastal environments, and morphodynamic approach.
• Key controlling factors: geology, geodynamics, climate, and human pressure.

• Reference levels and measurement methods.
• Processes: eustasy, isostasy, tectonics, steric effects.
• Quaternary fluctuations and Holocene transgressions.
• Recent and future rise linked to climate change.

• Tides, waves, currents, and wind as drivers of sediment transport and coastal change.

• Barrier beaches, dunes, polders, and estuaries.
• Coastal dynamics and anthropogenic pressures.
• Coastal management strategies (hard and soft engineering).

• Types and global distribution of cliffs.
• Marine and subaerial processes of erosion and retreat.
• Rates of change, mass movements, and monitoring techniques.

• Definitions and main characteristics.
• Sediment transport, storage, and stratigraphic architecture.
• Mixing processes between fresh and marine waters.
• Morphological variability (river-, tide-, and wave-dominated).
• Human occupation and vulnerability to floods.

• Coral reef geomorphology, ecological roles, and climate vulnerability.
• Mangrove dynamics, sediment trapping, and coastal protection.
• Impacts of sea-level rise, storms, and human pressures.

• Historical and contemporary coastal engineering (seawalls, groynes, breakwaters, nourishment).
• Case studies: Delta Works, Zandmotor, Nile Delta, California beaches.
• Pollution, eutrophication, and hypoxia in coastal systems.
• Ecological engineering and sustainable strategies.

Learning outcomes of the learning unit

At the end of this course, students will be able to:

• Understand and explain the impacts of sea-level rise linked to climate change on different types of coastlines.
• Describe and compare the main coastal geomorphologies worldwide, as well as the physical processes shaping them.
• Identify and analyse the growing human impacts on coastal environments (seawalls, groynes, breakwaters, beach nourishment, coastal development), using concrete examples from lectures and field observations.
• Observe and characterise in the field different coastal environments (beaches and dunes, cliffs, estuaries), by applying both theoretical and practical tools.
• Use Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to analyse coastal issues such as shoreline change, erosion, and management strategies.
• Mobilise their scientific knowledge through the critical analysis of research articles and the oral presentation of bibliographic work.

Prerequisite knowledge and skills

Basics in geology and geomorphology

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

• Lectures and podcasts: presentation of key concepts and major issues, complemented with recorded resources to support autonomous learning.
  
  
• Three-day field trip (Somme Bay and Cap Blanc Nez): a central and compulsory activity of the course, enabling students to directly connect theory with field observations and to characterise different coastal geomorphologies.
  
  
• Integrated practical exercises: GIS-based analysis of the Somme Bay coastline; compulsory assignments to be submitted and graded, ensuring strong links between fieldwork, theory, and practice.
  
  
• Active and flipped learning: student presentations based on recent scientific publications related to the course topics, aimed at fostering critical thinking, awareness of current research, and communication skills.
  
  
• Independent work: group analysis of a tropical coastal environment, followed by an assessed oral presentation, allowing students to mobilise and transfer acquired knowledge.
  
  

Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)

Face-to-face course


Further information:

The course is delivered primarily face-to-face, through lectures, practical sessions, and student oral presentations. It is complemented by the use of self-paced podcasts, designed to prepare or deepen specific parts of the course within a flipped-classroom approach. Online quizzes (MCQs) may occasionally be used to assess students' understanding of the podcast content.

Course materials and recommended or required readings

Platform(s) used for course materials:
- MyULiège


Further information:

PowerPoint Files of the lectures are available sur MyUliege.

Reference Book:

• Masselink, G., Gehrels, R. (eds), 2014, Costal Environments and Global Change.

• Geomorphology- The Mechanism and Chemistry of Landscapes. Robert S. Anderson & Suzanne P. Anderson. Cambridge University Press. Disponible à la bibliothèque de l'ULg.
• Salomon J.N., Géomorphologie sous-marine et littorale, Presses Universitaires de Bordeaux
• Perry C., Taylor K., 2007, Environmental Sedimentology, Blackwell Publishing.
• Bird E., 2000, Coastal Geomorphology, an introduction, Wiley.
• Davis jr R.A., Fitgerald D.M., Beaches and coasts, Blackwell Publishing.

Exam(s) in session

Any session

- In-person

written exam ( open-ended questions )

Written work / report

Other : Oral Presentation and possibly QCM


Further information:

Assessment methods:

• 40%: written exam during the examination session.
• 30%: submitted practical assignments.
• 30%: oral presentations and, where applicable, multiple-choice quizzes on podcasts (outside the examination session).

Work placement(s)

Organisational remarks and main changes to the course

The cost of the three-day field trip is approximately €110, subject to variation depending on the number of enrolled students.

Contacts

Aurélia Hubert-Ferrari

tél. 04/366 93 95

email : aurelia.ferrari@uliege.be

Association of one or more MOOCs

Items online