Littoral Cell and Sediment

Budget

Coastal Geomorphology

CARLNENUS JOHNSON

Outline
Littoral Cell
Definition
Examples
Application

Sediment Budget
Definition
Application
Example

Littoral Cell
Definition
A coastal compartment that contains a complete cycle of
sedimentation including sources, transport paths, and
sinks

A section of the coast where the budget of sediment is

balanced

In theory, the transport rate past the up drift and down

drift boundaries is zero

Key terms: Sediment Source, Transport Path, Sink

Littoral Cell
Definition
The sediment sources are commonly:
Streams
Eroding sea clif
Onshore/ofshore sand banks
Material of biological origin such as shells, coral
fragments, and skeletons of small marine
organisms.

Key terms: Sediment Source, Transport

Path, Sink

Littoral Cell
Definition
Transport path(s)
along the coast by waves and currents (longshore
transport, longshore drift, or littoral drift)

Cross-shore (on/ofshore) paths may include

windblown sand, overwash, and ice-push

Key terms: Sediment Source, Transport

Path, Sink

Littoral Cell
Definition
Sediment sinks
submarine canyons
shoals or
onshore dune migration, rollover, and
deposition in bays and estuaries

Key terms: Sediment Source, Transport

Path, Sink

Littoral Cell
Examples Types of coasts
Collision Sediment Source
rivers/clifs/blufflands

Trailing edge - Sediment Source:

headlands/clifs/shelved

Marginal Sea - Sediment Source: Rivers/delta

Arctic Form - Shelf/river/thaw erosion
Coral Reef

- Reef material

Littoral Cell
Examples Types of coasts
Collision Sediment Source
rivers/clifs/blufflands

Trailing edge - Sediment Source:

headlands/clifs/shelved

Marginal Sea - Sediment Source: Rivers/delta

Arctic Form - Shelf/river/thaw erosion
Coral Reef

- Reef material

Littoral Cell
Examples

Littoral Cell
Examples

Littoral Cell
Application
Identify processes that will be disturbed or
enhanced by projects

Sand mining in river bed

Dam construction
Groyne construction

Sediment Budget
Sediment Budget
Definition
Application
Example

Sediment Budget
Definition
A sediment budget is a tally of sediment
gains and losses within a cell over a given
time. (US army corps)

Sediment budgets are a fundamental tool for

management

Sediment budget equation

Sediment Budget
Definition

Sediment Budget
Definition
Generally, the methods estimate a likely range of values
for the best-known quantities and solve for the lesserknown terms.

Volume change data, and removal and placement

records usually provide the foundation for the sediment
budget.

Then, a range of accepted longshore transport rates

and a range in relative magnitude of other fluxes are
applied to solve the budget. Imbalance of the equation
is addressed by varying these parameters, and other
terms with great uncertainty, such as ofshore losses

Sediment Budget
Application
To quantify the flow rate of sediments entering
and exiting a defined region of the coast and
the surplus or deficit remaining in that region
for a particular time period. (long term/short
term)

To determine the sources and sinks in a littoral

cell through application of the primary
conservation of mass equation.

A tool for regional planning and management

Sediment
Budget
Example
North New
Jersey (1966)

Littoral Cell and Sediment

Budget
Conclusion :The littoral cell and its
budget of sediment are essential
planning tools for regional and
coastal management.