Places like Charleston, SC, which are nearby water bodies, are always in need of erosion control Charleston services because of the constant threat of shoreline erosion.
Shoreline erosion occurs when rocks, soils, and sands near the shore are worn down or carried away by natural processes such as local sea level rise, significant wave action, and coastal flooding. This natural process is bad news for people with waterfront properties, docks, for example, because it compromises their structural stability.
This leads you to wonder what else causes these erosions and how you can prevent them from affecting your property.
The Cause
Aside from currents and waves, there are a lot of factors that cause shoreline erosion. Those include the following:
Storms
Heavy shifting in sandy soil can be caused by even a small amount of rainfall, depending on the slope of the land. When heavy rains wash over a property, they may cause a condition known as “sheet erosion,” which occurs when uniform layers of soil are washed away.
Vegetation Removal
The barriers that plant roots form to protect the soil and keep it in place from wind and water. Shallow water is home to several types of aquatic plants, which help mitigate the force of crashing waves. The roots of these plants anchor the soil so that it cannot be displaced by anything that makes touch with it.
The entire erosive force of the waves can impact the earth if vegetation around the beach is cleared away.
Seawalls Construction
A seawall is any permanent structure built into the shoreline to protect against the onslaught of waves. This coastal “hardening” hinders wave energy absorption, unlike natural vegetation. In most cases, the force acts downhill, scouring the bottom of the lake, sea, or river and gradually increasing the depth of the water body and weakening the efficiency of the barrier.
But, if the wave’s energy is deflected laterally, a phenomenon known as “wave flanking,” the adjacent properties will sustain more erosion damage.
Consistent Foot traffic
Walking along your waterfront property with a high foot traffic rate might stunt the growth of any vegetation there. As a result, the soil becomes less stable and loses its ability to hold its shape thanks to the roots and plant life that maintain the particles tightly packed. After then, the particles are carried away when there is sufficient wind, snow, or rain.
The Prevention
Prevention is better than cure, and that is true even with shoreline erosion. There are a few different measures that could be taken to stop erosion, including the following:
- It is important to conserve the rocks and plants that exist naturally along the beach.
- Guard the nearshore berms that have been forced up along lakeshores by the action of ice.
- It is important to ensure that surface runoff from places such as yards, patios, and roads does not flow toward the coastline, particularly bluff regions.
- They prevent an excessive amount of surface runoff and retain sand, which the beach benefits from when it is fed.
- It is important to avoid building anything within a 100-foot radius of the seashore or the edge of any nearshore cliffs.
- Reduce the quantity of foot traffic and other leisure activities in erosion-prone locations.
Nonetheless, even with precautions taken, severe coastal erosion can occur under the worst circumstances, such as high water levels, powerful windstorms, dramatic ice movement, and certain coastline designs. The most effective thing you can do is to actually try to prevent it or call for help from erosion control experts.
