th
Organisers: Dr Katherine Selby
Co-organisers: Professor Antony Long and Dr Sarah Woodroffe
Correspondence: allatsea2011@events.york.ac.uk
1

September 8
0900-0930
0930-0940
0940-1030
1030-1100
1100-1300
1100-1120
1120-1140
1140-1200
1200-1220
1220-1240
1240-1300
1300-1400
1400-1540
1400-1420
1420-1440
2

1440-1500
1500-1520
1520-1540
1540-1610
1610-1710
1610-1630
1630-1650
1650-1710
1710
1800
1900
3

September 9
0830-0900
0900-0950
0950-1030
0950-1010
1010-1030
1030-1100
1100-1150
1150-1230
1150-1210
1210-1230
1230-1330
1330-1420
1420-1500
1420-1440
1440-1500
1500-1530
1530-1610
1530-1550
4

1550-1610
1610
5

th
6

Keynote presentation:
Going, going, gone: The erosion of our coastal heritage
Gustav Milne
Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 31-34 Gordon Square, London WC1H 0PY.
G.milne@ucl.co.uk
The United Kingdom has a long and sinuous inter-tidal coastline, some of which is advancing and some of which is retreating. It is the latter zone which forms the focus of this paper, a zone that is elongated by many tidal estuaries reaching far inland. Archaeological research in the inter-tidal zone has a long and muddy history, with projects on for example, the Humber, the Severn and the Thames demonstrating the remarkable potential of such sites. This work has also highlighted the extreme fragility and vulnerability of these sites, exposed as they are to tidal scour on a daily basis. Here is the evidence for coastal change and relative sea level rise across the long prehistoric period, embedded in ancient marsh deposits, submerged forests, palaeo-shorelines and former land surfaces. The key features have to be identified, recorded, surveyed and levelled to realise their potential, information that cannot be gained from any other site-type. Many other sites representing sea-salt manufacture from the Iron Age to the medieval period have been found, fixed-net fish-traps -some of prodigious size- ports such as sad Dunwich, long-disused harbours: a whole range of site types and periods are exposed and destroyed by the daily cycle of tidal erosion. Then there are the abandoned vessels;
Bronze-Age, Roman and Medieval craft have all been found on the open foreshore, as have much larger ships, such as the East Indiaman, the 'Amsterdam', not to mention the hundreds of 18th, 19th and early 20th-century boats and barges abandoned at the end of the hard-working lives. This is a uniquely valuable resource for those studying the maritime heritage of an Island Nation.
But this research resource is largely uncatalogued and unmanaged: in spite of the very best of intentions and in spite of a remarkable series of Rapid Intertidal Coastal Zone Surveys that have provided tantalising snapshots of what might be out there. Every day, twice a day, the tide rolls in and rolls out, taking with it yet more archaeological evidence, unseen and unrecorded.
So what can be done? This paper reviews the work of a community archaeological project on the
Thames, in an attempt to show how a long-term monitoring programme might be established, providing a means whereby at least a sample of the information exposed might be not be lost to future researchers, be they prehistorians, local historians or maritime archaeologists.
7

The Humber Regional Environmental Characterisation Project: Final Results
David Tappin 1 , Benjamin Gearey* 2 , Simon Fitch 2 and Bryony Pearce 3
1: British Geological Survey, Keyworth, Nottingham, NG12 5GG
2: Institute of Archaeology and Antiquity, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston,
Birmingham, B15 2TT
3: Marine Ecological Services Ltd., 3 Palace Yard Mews, Bath, BA1 2NH
B.R.Gearey@Bham.ac.uk
This paper summarises the final results of MALSF/DEFRA funded Humber REC Project which investigated an area of around 11,000 square km of the southern North Sea offshore of the Humber.
The project integrated legacy geological, geophysical and biological data with targeted survey, ground truthing and sampling with the aims of: 1) determining the sedimentary characteristics of the seabed;
2) defining the distribution and character of marine habitats; 3) investigating the archaeological and palaeoenvironmental potential of the submerged landscape and 4) assessing the impact of human activities such as dredging and trawling on the seabed. New maps of sea bed morphology, sediment distribution, bed forms and Quaternary geology have been constructed with associated interpretation of the geological evolution of the area over the past ~20,000 years. The major seabed habitats and key faunal communities have been recorded and characterised, with predicted biotope distribution maps created utilising the EUNIS habitat classification scheme and the REC Humber modelled biotypes habitat suitability modelling. A number of rare and scarce species were recorded within the study area although these were by and large only single observations. The exception to this was the tiny bivalve Coracuta obliquata which was found in samples from the floor of the Sole Pit. Although not classified as rare or threatened C. obliquata has only been recorded once in UK waters over the last 100 years and very little is known about this bivalve species. Archaeological evidence includes ship and plane wrecks, mainly dating to the 19 th Century and later. This aspect of the project also included the survey, sampling and palaeoenvironmental analyses of deposits associated with the early
Holocene landscape, prior to the emplacement of the southern North Sea. These data provide important evidence of the character of the pre-inundation landscape and the timing and nature of environmental changes associated with rising relative sea level at the end of the last (Devensian) glaciation.
8

The sedimentary record of the Larnaca salt lake, Cyprus: testing the impact of environmental changes on the Late Bronze Age abandonment of the harbour town Halla Sultan Tekke.
Vanessa M.A. Heyaert 1 ,K. Szkornik 2 , J. Walstra 3 , Karin Nys 4
1 Geological Survey of Belgium, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, Belgium
²School of Physical and Geographical Sciences, Keele University, United Kingdom
³University of Ghent, Belgium
4 Mediterranean Archaeological Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium
Vanessa.heyvaert@naturalsciences.be
A complex of interconnected salt lakes, fringing the Mediterranean Sea between the town of Larnaca and Cape Kiti, marks the Larnaca coastal plain in Eastern Cyprus. The archaeological site of Hala
Sultan Tekke (HST), identified as a Bronze Age harbor town, is situated directly to the west of the main salt lake. Nearby the HST site, the main salt lake is protected from the Mediterranean Sea by a
NE-SW trending Pleistocene sandstone barrier. A second Middle to Late Holocene ridge separates the interconnected salt lakes from the Mediterranean Sea.
Hand-operated augering took place in the main salt lake, close to the HST site, as well as in the southernmost lake (Menoui beach), close to the present-day coastline. The facies of the sediment succession in the cores are identified on the basis of lithology, sedimentary structures and macrofossils. Data from mechanical drilling logs (Geological Surface of Cyprus) are integrated to establish the bedrock topography.
Preliminary field results indicate that the sedimentary sequence can be subdivided into Pliocene bedrock, open marine, lagoon, salt lake and coastal ridge deposits. The open marine sedimentary unit is comprised of horizontal packs of reworked Posidonia Oceanica fibres , alternating with beds of bluish grey sandy mud, rich in open-marine shells ( Abra tenuis, Venerupis aureus ). This open marine sedimentary unit is mainly found in boreholes located in the southernmost lake where it is covered by rather thin layers (up to 0.5 m) of lagoon and salt lake deposits. It suggests that during the Early
Holocene the bay of Larnaca was open, but protected; its floor being built up behind a sublittoral
Posidonia meadow.
Close to the HST site, the sedimentary succession in boreholes reflects a more confined marine embayment protected by the Pleistocene barrier. This embayment gradually evolved into lagoon, coastal marsh and finally into an enclosed salt lake due to the development of a Middle to Late
Holocene coastal ridge along the present-day shoreline. This coastal ridge consists of up-to 10 m thick packages of accumulated pebbles, overlying Posidonia rich open marine deposits. The pebbles are transported and reworked by long shore drift from an erosion front (Cape Kiti and Trimithos river mouth) south of the salt-lake complex.
Historical sources document that from the 16 th century on, the lake became one of the most important sites for salt extraction in the Mediterranean.
This research was carried out in the framework of the IAPproject ‘Greater Mesopotamia:
Reconstructing its History and Environment’ and funded by a ‘Horizontal Research Action’ of the Vrije
Universiteit Brussel, Belgium.
9

Holocene environmental change in coastal Denmark: interactions between land, sea and society
Jonathan Lewis 1 , David Ryves 2 , Peter Rasmussen 3 , Kaj Strand Petersen 4 , Suzanne McGowan 5 .
1 J.P.Lewis@lboro.ac.uk, Loughborough University, Loughborough, United Kingdom
2 *, D.B.Ryves@lboro.ac.uk, Loughborough University, Loughborough, United Kingdom
3 Peter Rasmussen, per@geus.dk, GEUS, Copenhagen, Denmark
4 Kaj Strand Petersen, ksp@geus.dk, GEUS, Copenhagen, Denmark
5 Suzanne McGowan, Suzanne.McGowan@lboro.ac.uk, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United
Kingdom
*Presenting author, Dr. David Ryves.
In this paper results are presented from a multiproxy study (including sedimentary techniques, diatoms, molluscs, foraminifera, sedimentary pigments, isotopes, pollen and plant macrofossils) assessing environmental change over the last ~9,000 years at three Danish coastal sites (Kilen,
Norsminde Fjord and Korup Sø). A diatom-based salinity transfer-function (WAPLS-C3 model, r 2 boot
=
0.91, RMSEP = 0.37 square root salinity units), based on a trans-Baltic training set is employed for quantification of temporal changes in salinity at each site. Particular focus is placed on periods of intense human coastal occupation, identifiable in Denmark’s rich coastal archaeological record (i.e. shell midden accumulation periods), to test critically, hypotheses that changes in the marine environment might have influenced, or even driven major cultural and societal changes over the last
~9,000 years. For example, it has been proposed that a decrease in salinity was responsible for the widespread oyster decline, apparent in the Neolithic layers of a number of Danish shell middens. This hypothesis, however, remains speculative to date, lacking any high-resolution and quantitative salinity data covering the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition. Inside the agricultural era, two more phases of shell midden accumulation occur (i.e. during the Pitted Ware/Single Grave cultural period and the Iron Age), suggesting that people must have returned to the sea at these times for increased exploitation of its resources. Interactions between land, sea and society are also explored over the study period.
10

Fifty years of sea-level reconstruction in the Netherlands: regional and local factors influencing Holocene water-level evolution
Patrick Kiden 1 & Bart Makaske 2
1 Geological Survey of The Netherlands – TNO, Utrecht, The Netherlands
2 Alterra - Wageningen University and Research Centre, Wageningen, The Netherlands
1 patrick.kiden@tno.nl
Since the benchmark study of Jelgersma (1961), increasingly detailed water-level studies in the coastal area of the Netherlands have enabled a progressively more accurate reconstruction of the
Holocene sea-level rise. They have also unveiled a number of factors, other than sea-level movements, which influence palaeo-water-level records in the coastal zone on vertical scales of decimeters to meters, and temporal scales of 10^2 to 10^3 years. These factors are mainly of geological, morphodynamical and hydro(geo)logical origin and comprise:

isostatic and tectonic land-level movements;

local and regional differences in palaeo-groundwater level;

changes in the palaeotidal range, a.o. floodbasin and estuary effects;

river-gradients and their temporal changes;

local water-level changes due to river avulsions;

anthropogenic activities as construction of embankments and drainage-related compaction.
We give an overview of these factors, their often complex interaction, and their signature in the waterlevel records, including the temporal and spatial scales on which they operate. Their magnitude may sometimes be modelled (e.g. palaeotides, isostasy), but in most cases can only be estimated in a semi-quantitative way on the basis of a number of assumptions. A prerequisite for any realistic assessment of local/regional effects is detailed knowledge of the palaeogeographical development of the coastal environment in the (wider) study area. Conversely, palaeo-water-level records often provide a control on and serve to constrain aspects of palaeogeographical reconstructions and the assumptions underlying them.
Unravelling the causes of water-level fluctuations in the coastal zone not only represents an interesting academic challenge, but also generates basic knowledge for, a.o., archaeological assessments, geological and palaeoecological reconstructions, long-term morphodynamic models, and the development of scenarios of future changes in the coastal environment.
Jelgersma, S. (1961). Holocene sea-level changes in the Netherlands. Mededelingen Geologische
Stichting, C-IV (7), 100 pp.
11

Changeful Holocene sedimentary record of a modern embayed tidal flat system, Jade Bay,
Lower Saxony, Northwest Germany
Wolfram Wartenberg 1 , Holger Freund 1 , Friederike Bungenstock 2
1 Institute for Chemistry and Biology of the Marine environment (ICBM), Wilhelmshaven, Germany, wolfram.wartenberg@icbm.de
2 Lower Saxony Institute for Historical Coastal Research (NIhK), Wilhelmshaven, Germany
The modern embayed tidal flat system of the Jade Bay in Lower Saxony, Northwest Germany, shows a changeful Holocene sedimentary record from terrestrial-driven to seaward-influenced. The Jade area of interest has been examined interpreting sedimentary markers, pollen and macro remains taken from 43 cores that have been drilled in 2009 and 2010. Its chronology is based on 36 radiocarbon datings.
Two different palaeo-environments are related to the present-day Jade Bay, each identifying a distinctive local depositional development. From the West to the centre, a pronounced basal peat is up to ~1.20 m thick, spanning at maximum ~3000 years of sedentation. This basal peat starts with an alder carr to Cyperaceae fen peat and ends under soggy conditions. The equivalent early Holocene landscape morphology is drainage-driven, feeding the associated fen peat with minerogenic water but being autonomous from isochronic relative sea-level, dating back to 6225 cal. BC. Within the central part of the Jade Bay, bedload sediments scarcely crop out at the surface. To the East, the sedimentary record is dominated by brackish-lagoonal facies in places intercalated by fen peat layers.
The equivalent palaeo-morphology is influenced by a major North-South trending channel, representing the structural rudiment for an early stage of the advancing sea. From approximately 4500 cal. BC onwards, the palaeo-coastline must have been close, starting to increase the groundwaterlevel. Within the area of interest, from ~3000 to ~2800 cal. BC marine inundation took place. The comparison of the western and the eastern palaeo-environments shows coincident event-stratigraphic markers of early to late Holocene age.
In close vicinity to outcropping Pleistocene sediments, that is, within the western to central facies zone, Pollen analysis shows typical anthropogenic indicators that may be correlated to a settlement phase of Bronze Age.
12

Holocene salt-marsh stratigraphy and coastal evolution of the Dyfi Estuary, west Wales, UK
Katie Szkornik 1 , Kelly L.A. Ross 1 , William A. Marshall 2 and Nigel J. Cassidy 1
1 School of Physical and Geographical Sciences, Keele University, Staffordshire, ST5 5BG, UK
2 School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, Plymouth University, Plymouth, PL4 8AA,
UK
*Corresponding author: Katie Szkornik (k.szkornik@esci.keele.ac.uk)
Relative sea-level predictions for the Welsh coastline produced by glacio-isostatic adjustment (GIA) models show that the estuaries of west Wales, and in particular the Dyfi estuary, occupy a crucial location with regards to Holocene sea-level studies. Modellers of the GIA process (e.g. Peltier,
Lambeck and others) suggest that relative sea-level in the region attained a sea-level highstand equal to, or greater than, present day sea level around 4000 years before present, decreasing in altitude with distance southwards (Edwards, 2006). However, these model predictions are the subject of some considerable debate and, in several cases, have yet to be supported by reliable field data. Although the Dyfi estuary has a long and rich history of ecological, lithological and biostratigraphical research, reliable sea-level data remain very sparse especially for the late Holocene time period. Here we present results of our initial litho- and biostratigraphical (diatoms) investigations from salt-marsh cores in the Dyfi Estuary, alongside an evaluation of existing published stratigraphy (e.g., Wilks, Shi and
Lamb), and provide new insights into the palaeoenvironmental history and evolution of the estuary.
Three key stages in the development of the estuary are identified: (1) an estuarine/marine phase characterised by deposition of a lower clay unit which grades into a silty sand and contains some shell remains, (2) a freshwater phase (from at least 6300 cal. yrs BP) characterised by deposition of a widespread peat deposit and, (3) a return to more brackish conditions characterised by deposition of a peaty-clay unit (salt-marsh?) from at least 3000 cal. years BP. In some cores, this peaty-clay unit is overlain by an upper clay unit, suggesting a later return to more marine conditions. The localised nature of this unit may be indicative of changing tidal dynamics within the estuary. Additional litho- and biostraigraphical investigations, alongside radiocarbon and radionuclide dating, will permit a more detailed analysis of relative sea-level change and coastal evolution within the Dyfi estuary, the results of which will be of significant importance to GIA modellers.
Edwards, R.J. 2006. Mid- to late Holocene relative sea-level change in SW Britain and the influence of sediment compaction. The Holocene , 16 (4): 575 – 587.
13

Constraints on late glacial relative sea level in western Ireland
Roland Gehrels 1 , Robin Edwards 2 , Ralph Fyfe 1 , Kate Stokes 1
1 School of Geography, Earth & Environmental Sciences; University of Plymouth; UK; wrgehrels@plymouth.ac.uk
2 Department of Geography, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
On the west coast of Ireland the presence or absence of raised shorelines and marine sediments of late glacial age is controversial. Two opposing models of late glacial relative sea-level change have been proposed: (1) a sea-level highstand model (e.g., McCabe and Clark, 2003; McCabe et al., 2007;
Thomas and Chiverrell, 2006); and (2) a lower-than-present sea level model (e.g., Lambeck, 1996;
Lambeck and Purcell, 2001; Brooks et al., 2007).
To test these models we investigated the stratigraphy of a small coastal basin at Loch Fhada in southern Connemara. The basin is surrounded and underlain by glacially sculpted bedrock and separated from the sea by two low-lying bedrock sills. At the present time, the sea overtops the sills during high tides and the basin is occupied by a fresh to slightly brackish Juncus marsh. We hypothesized that if sea level was ever higher than present in the past the basin should contain marine sediments.
In the deepest part the basin is filled with 10 m of organic sediments. Three radiocarbon dates identify late glacial sediments at the base of the sequence, including peat fo rmed during the Bølling-Allerød interstadial and minerogenic sediments deposited during the Younger Dryas. The late glacial sequence is confirmed by the pollen stratigraphy. Diatom analyses demonstrate that all sediments, including the clays, are of freshwater origin.
Deglaciation in this area took place around 16,000 cal BP (Ballantyne et al., 2008). The absence of marine sediments therefore indicates that since ~16,000 cal BP sea level has never overtopped the bedrock sills and has always been lower than its present position. One of the implications of this finding is that the proposed glaciomarine deltas at elevations of 65-78 m, found by Chiverrell and
Thomas (2006) about 30-40 km to the north of our site, are most likely glaciolacustrine features.
Ballantyne, C.K., Stone, J.O. and McCarroll, D. (2008) Dimensions and chronology of the last ice sheet in Western Ireland. Quaternary Science Reviews 27, 185-200.
Brooks, A.J., Bradley, S.L., Edwards, R.J., Milne, G.A., Horton, B. and Shennan, I. (2007) Postglacial relative sea-level observation from Ireland and their role in glacial rebound modelling. Journal of
Quaternary Research 23, 175-192.
Lambeck, K. (1996) Glaciation and sea-level change for Ireland and the Irish Sea since Late
Devensian/Midlandian time. Journal of the Geological Society 153, 853-872.
Lambeck, K. and Purcell, A.P. (2001) Sea-level change in the Irish Sea since the last glacial maximum: constraints from isostatic modelling. Journal of Quaternary Science 16, 497-506.
McCabe, A.M. and Clark, P.U. (2003) Deglacial chronology from County Donegal, Ireland: implications for deglaciation of the British-Irish ice sheet. Journal of the Geological Society London 160, 847-855.
McCabe, A.M., Clark, P.U. and Clark, J. (2007) Radiocarbon constraints on the history of the western
Irish Ice Sheet prior to the Last Glacial Maximum. Geology 35, 147-150.
Thomas, G.S.P. and Chiverrell, R.C. (2006) A model of subaqueous sedimentation at the margin of the Late Midlandian Irish Ice Sheet, Connemara, Ireland, and its implications for regionally high isostatic sea-levels. QSR, 25, 2868-2893.
14

Quantifying the amount of sea-level rise that triggered the 8.2 ka climate cooling a Lawrence, T., Gehrels, W.R. & Grimes, S.
School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, Devon, UK, PL4
8AA a Corresponding author: thomas.lawrence@postgrad.plymouth.ac.uk
The abrupt global cooling about 8200 years ago was the most significant and abrupt climate excursion of the
Holocene. Regional temperatures dropped by 1° to 5°C for about 100 years, with the strongest cooling in the
North Atlantic region. This socalled ‘8.2 ka climate event’ is perceived to be a useful analogue for abrupt, century-scale climate change that could occur in the future as a consequence of global warming and increased melting of ice sheets, and was likely caused by a freshwater perturbation into the Labrador Sea following the rapid drainage of proglacial lakes Agassiz and Ojibway. Quantifying the exact amount of meltwater that entered this sensitive part of the North Atlantic is of crucial importance for modelling studies that seek to elucidate the response of the thermohaline circulation to freshwater perturbations.
Two empirical sea-level studies and numerous modelling studies have attempted to determine the total magnitude of the sudden 8.2 ka sea-level rise (SLR), with varying success. The first empirical record is from coastal Louisiana (Tornqvist et al . 2004) and the second is from the Netherlands (Hijma and Cohen, 2010).
Although the pattern of sea-level change is spatially non-uniform, the exact amount of sea-level rise remains largely unresolved. For example, published estimates fall within the large range of 0.4 – 3.0 m. Saltmarsh sediments provide sensitive sea-level indicators, and often former sea levels can be reconstructed with a typical vertical precision of ~±0.20 m. In this study, I use transfer functions to predict the elevations of former sea levels based on fossil (foraminiferal) assemblages from northeast England.
At Alnmouth, Northumbria, buried saltmarsh sediments overlying a near-basal peat that predates the 8.2 ka event by ~400 years (Shennan et al . 2000) were sampled contiguously for foraminifera at 0.5 cm resolution.
Fossil foraminiferal assemblages were calibrated from a local training set in order to construct a continuous record of relative sealevel (RSL) change with a vertical precision of ± 0.12 cm. The local model is corroborated against a regional model and the difference between the two calibrated datasets is minimal. Model outputs indicate two episodes of SLR imposed upon a background trend of early Holocene SLR. Each marsh drowning is followed by an apparent RSL fall, which is likely to be a manifestation of the natural vertical response of the saltmarsh as the rate of SLR slowed following phases of rapid SLR. The model calibration predicts that sea-level jumps ‘a’ and ‘b’ had an order of magnitude of 0.54 cm and 0.66 cm respectively, totaling 1.20 m of sea-level rise. These reconstructions have been adjusted for paleotidal evolution based on existing paleotidal modelling data from UK shelf seas.
The start and end of both sea-level jumps will each be dated three times in order to confirm that they are associated with the 8.2 ka cooling event. Once dated, the background rate of SLR will be extracted from the record in order to isolate the RSL rise that preluded and likely triggered the 8.2 ka event. Once this has been achieved the data can be adjusted in accordance with sea-level fingerprint theory to determine the total amount of freshwater that caused the 8.2 cooling, because the UK likely experienced ~70% of the total magnitude of sea-level rise (Kendall et al . 2008).
Hijma, M.P and Cohen, K.M. 2010. Timing and magnitude of the sea-level jump preluding the 8200 yr event,
Geology 38 (3), 275-278.
Kendall, R.A., Mitrovica, J.X., Milne, G.A., Tornqvist, T.E., Li, Y. 2008. The sea-level fingerprint of the 8.2 ka climate event, Geology , 36(5), 423-428.
Shennan, I, Horton, B.P., Gehrels, W.R., Lloyd, J., McArthur, J., and Rutherford, M. 2000. Late Quaternary sealevel changes, crustal movements and coastal evolution in Northumberland, UK. Journal of Quaternary Science
15 (3), 215-237.
Tornqvist, T., Bick, S.J., Gonzalez, J.L., van der Borg, K. and de Jong, A.F.K. 2004. Tracking the sea-level signature of the 8.2 ka cooling event – new constrains from the Mississippi Delta, Geophysical Research Letters ,
31, doi: doi:10.1029/2004GL021429.
15

Relative sea level change in New England, USA; preliminary results from Maine and
Connecticut
Margot Saher 1* , Roland Gehrels 1 , Natasha Barlow 2 and Antony Long 2
1 School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Plymouth, Drake Circus, PL4
8AA Plymouth, UK
2 Department of Geography, Durham University, Science Laboratories, South Road, Durham,
DH1 3LE, UK
*:margot.saher@plymouth.ac.uk; ++44-(0)1752-585989
We will be presenting new records of relative sea level change for Sanborn Cove, Maine, and Barn
Island, Connecticut. These records, which build on from earlier low resolution work by Gehrels (1999) and Donnelly et al. (2004), form part of a larger-scale project on the reconstruction of 500 years of sea level change in the North Atlantic. This project is aimed at establishing whether this basin acts as one body in relation to sea level change, and what the main forcing agents of north Atlantic sea level change are. The sea level reconstructions are based on diatom and foraminifera assemblages in salt marsh sediments. The upper ~90 years of these records have been dated using 210 Pb and 137 Cs. We will utilise these preliminary results by comparing them with tide gauge records and modelled results, which are available over a similar time span. This will provide insight into the accuracy of the reconstruction, and the model-data comparability.
Donnelly, J. P., P. Cleary, P. Newby, and R. Ettinger (2004), Coupling instrumental and geological records of sea-level change: Evidence from southern New England of an increase in the rate of sealevel rise in the late 19th century, Geophys. Res. Lett.
, 31, L05203 .
Gehrels, W. R. (1999), Middle and Late Holocene Sea-Level Changes in Eastern Maine
Reconstructed from Foraminiferal Saltmarsh Stratigraphy and AMS 14C Dates on Basal Peat,
Quaternary Research , 52 (3), 350-359.
16

Late Holocene relative sea level change in northwest Scotland
Natasha Barlow 1* , Antony Long 1 , Margot Saher 2 and Roland Gehrels 2
1 Department of Geography, Durham University
2 School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Plymouth
* n.l.m.barlow@durham.ac.uk; +44(0)191 334 1972
Since the early 1990s, average global sea level has accelerated and is predicted to rise by 18-79 cm by the end of the 21st century. When such accelerations in sea level are synchronous on a regional to global scale they record an unambiguous climatic signal and provide evidence of the sensitivity of the atmosphere –cryosphere–ocean system to climatic change. Testing for synchroneity of sea-level signals in the past provides critical constraints for ocean-climate models that are used to predict future sea-level changes. One way to address this problem is to develop longer-term records of sea level based on proxy data collected from salt marshes. We present results from one site which forms part of a wider research programme, analysing spatial and temporal trends in sea-level change across the
North Atlantic during the last 500 years.
Three new records of late Holocene relative sea level changes from a salt marsh at the head of Loch
Laxford, Sutherland, northwest Scotland, on the periphery of the region of present day isostatic uplift, provide a new long term record. We use the relationship of the distribution of salt marsh diatoms and foraminifera relative to elevation on the modern marsh to reconstruct fossil changes down core and therefore provide estimates of past sea level. The sequences are dated using humin 14 C fractions and
137 Cs and 210 Pb radionuclides. Our results provide the longest (2000 years) continual records of late
Holocene sea level change from this region. The three cores, from different elevations in the tidal frame, provide varying resolutions of past sea level change and allow us to extract key trends in regional sea level, away from those caused by local intra-site variability.
17

Observational data for a mid-Holocene sea-level highstand in the Mediterranean
Barbara Mauz 1 , Gabriella Ruggieri 2 , Giorgio Spada 2
1 School of Environmental Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7ZT, UK
2 Departments of Base Science and Fundamentals, University of Urbino, 61029 Urbino, Italy
Knowledge of regional sea-level histories is indispensable for reliably predicting the response of coast to sea-level rise. One parameter of the sea-level history is the contribution of Antarctic melt water to post-glacial global sea-level change. Some Mediterranean coasts are, theoretically, suitable to fingerprint Antarctic melt water because they are a far-field of the former ice sheets, post-glacial forebulge and glacio-isostatic rebound movements are minimal and limited to small areas and its micro-tidal environment allows observations close to the modern mean sea level. Glacio-isostatic adjustment (GIA) models predict a time and space-specific interaction between the eustatic and the water-load component of the relative sea level (RSL; Lambeck and Purcell, 2005; Mitrovica and Milne,
2002; Stocchi and Spada, 2007) resulting in a RSL highstand followed by a RSL fall at coasts where the water component is dominant. Coasts that show sensitivity to the subsidence of the central
Mediterranean basins that attracts water masses from the far field equatorial oceans and, at the same time, show insensitivity to the effect of the former north hemisphere ice sheets, are likely to record the
Antarctic signal. GIA models predict that these coasts are situated on the north African shores of the east Mediterranean.
We re-visited a site in SE Tunisia which is well known for its mid Holocene RSL highstand deposit
(Jedoui et al., 1998; Morhange and Pirazzoli, 2005). Our data, based on analysis of the carbonate component of coastal deposit are complementary to existing ones and improve our understanding of processes operating at the SE Tunisian coast during the mid to late Holocene.
This paper will review and assess observational data from SE Tunisia in the light of its significance for an Antarctic melt water fingerprint.
18

Rapid and widespread response of the Lower Mississippi River to eustatic forcing in the last glacial-interglacial cycle
Zhixiong Shen 1 , Torbjörn E. Törnqvist 1,2 , Whitney J. Autin 3 , Zenon Richard P. Mateo 4 , Kyle M. Straub 1 , and Barbara Mauz 5
1 Department of Earth and Enivronmental Sciences, Tulane University, 6823 St. Charles Avenue, New
Orleans, Louisiana 70118-5698, USA
2 Tulane/Xavier Center for Bioenvironmental Research, Tulane University, 6823 St. Charles Avenue,
New Orleans, Louisiana 70118-5698, USA
3 Department of the Earth Sciences, State University of New York, College at Brockport, Brockport,10
New York 14420, USA
4 Department of Earth and Enivronmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, 845 West Taylor
12 Street, Chicago, Illinois 60607-7059, USA
5 School of Environmental Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7ZT, UK
Understanding the response of continental-scale alluvial systems to climate and sea-level changes is important not only to forecast how they may behave under rapidly changing environmental conditions, especially in the coastal zone, but also to improve our capability to make predictions in the ancient rock record. It has been hypothesized that fluvial response depends on the relationship between fluvial equilibrium time (
τ
) and periodicity of the external forcing ( T ). To test this hypothesis with field data, fluvial sedimentary records must span a temporal scale that is comparable to T of the external forcing. Orbitally controlled late Quaternary glacioeustatic fluctuation is characterized with a
~ 100 ka periodicity, excluding most fluvial sedimentary records to test this hypothesis because of the lack of conveniently accessible sedimentary records spanning an entire glacial-interglacial cycle, let alone the difficulty of furnishing reliable chronology resolution at this time scale.
The Lower Mississippi Valley (LMV) provides a rare continental-scale fluvial sedimentary record near the land surface that potentially spans the entire last glacial-interglacial cycle. In this study, surface geomorphology, stratigraphic architecture, and geochronology of the fluvial strata of the
Prairie Complex in the LMV were investigated with high-resolution digital elevation data, sediment cores, and quartz optically-stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating separately to study the fluvial response in the LMV during the last glacial-interglacial cycle. Geomorphic and sedimentologic records suggest that the Prairie Complex was formed by a meandering fluvial system similar to the Holocene
Lower Mississippi River. OSL ages indicate that the Prairie Complex consists of multiple allostratigraphic units that formed mainly during Marine Isotope Stages 7, 5e, and 5a. Thus, the aggradation of the Prairie Complex is strongly correlated with the sea-level highstands of the last two glacial-interglacial cycles. Fluvial incision during the sea-level fall associated with the MIS5a/4 transition extended as far inland as ~600 km from the present-day shoreline, testifying to the dominant downstream control of fluvial stratigraphic architecture in the LMV. The initiation of this incision constrained by OSL ages demonstrates that the Lower Mississippi River responded rapidly to allogenic forcing, suggesting that large fluvial systems can respond much more rapidly to allogenic forcing than commonly believed. The LMV is characterized by an equilibrium time of 25 to 75 ka.
Therefore, our results support the hypothesis that fluvial system responds rapidly to external forcing if
τ << T .
19

Compression of low energy intertidal sediments: controls, effects and solutions
Matthew J. Brain 1 *, Antony J. Long 1 , Sarah A. Woodroffe 1 , David N. Petley 1 and Andrew Parnell 2
1 Department of Geography, Durham University, Science Site, South Road, Durham, DH1 3LE, UK
2 School of Mathematical Sciences (Statistics), University College Dublin, Library Building, Belfield,
Dublin 4, Ireland
*Presenting/corresponding author: matthew.brain@durham.ac.uk
Through a combination of physical and biochemical processes, autocompaction reduces the vertical thickness of the sediment column, lowering sea level index points from their depositional altitudes.
This introduces a height error into the majority of reconstructions of sea level obtained from low energy intertidal environments. Correcting (‘decompacting’) sea level index points for the effects of sediment autocompaction has traditionally proven to be difficult due to limited understanding of the physical processes that control sediment compressibility. In addition, appropriate geotechnical data are not routinely collected during stratigraphic investigations in these settings.
We present results of a combined field and laboratory geotechnical testing programme that aims to improve our understanding of the key controls on sediment compressibility. We consider a broad range of lithologies, from minerogenic to organogenic, from three UK field sites that vary in geomorphic and hydrographic setting, and ecological and sedimentological character. Despite some local variations, we observe consistent patterns in compression behaviour at each of the sites.
Accordingly, we argue that the controls on sediment compressibility are linked, directly or indirectly, to the intertidal energy and salinity gradients, which are functions of elevation within the intertidal frame.
Since the observed trends in behaviour are general rather than site specific, we use our database of compression properties to broadly explore the effects of sediment compression on our understanding of sea level records obtained from low energy intertidal sediments. We numerically model compression in synthetic stratigraphic sequences to determine the combined influence of compressibility, strata sequence and thickness of the sediment column on compression profiles. We find some distinct patterns that, without correction, could erroneously be interpreted as accelerations, decelerations and fluctuations in historic sea level that could be incorrectly attributed to climatic forcing.
We use the compression models to demonstrate that assessment of downcore bulk density changes may be an inadequate method for determining the influence of compression since deposition.
However, we present significant predictive relationships between routinely-collected lithological and environment data (notably loss on ignition and reconstructed elevation) and key compression parameters. Such relationships suggest that first-order decompaction of intertidal sediments may be possible without the need for extensive geotechnical testing.
20

Reconstructing 150 years of change in UK seabed habitats
Ruth H. Thurstan 1 ; Julie P. Hawkins 1 ; Callum M. Roberts 1
1 Environment Department, University of York, UK, rht500@york.ac.uk
Bottom trawling and dredging activities have occurred in UK coastal environments for generations, yet there is a lack of data on the nature, extent and timing of change to subtidal marine habitats as a result of fishing. Shellfish habitats such as native oyster beds ( Ostrea edulis ) used to be abundant around the UK 1 . However overfishing, disease and introduced species took their toll and the native oyster is now listed as a UK Biodiversity Action Plan Priority Species 1 . Shellfish beds such as these supported high levels of biodiversity 1 hence their loss likely led to biodiversity decline and communitylevel changes.
We used a combination of current ecological survey and sediment coring techniques, alongside historical evidence of past oyster abundance to try and describe how mollusc communities had changed over time as a result of human activities. Three shallow subtidal sites around the UK that once contained commercially important oyster fisheries; Swansea Bay and Caldey Island in Wales and the Firth of Forth in Scotland, were surveyed using SCUBA and qualitatively compared to past surveys to determine how seabed epifauna had altered during the past century. No live oysters were found and few oyster shell remains were present, indicating that fundamental changes to these communities had occurred.
Sediment cores were taken from the Firth of Forth and Caldey Island sites and mollusc remains throughout the cores were identified and weighed. We then attempted to date nine of the Firth of Forth cores using heavy metal elemental profiles, Caesium-137 and Lead-210 dating in order to establish a timeline and gain insight into changes that had occurred in Firth of Forth oyster and other mollusc communities over the last 150 years. Results from the elemental profiles and Caesium-137 appeared to suggest that some chronology existed within the sediment cores. However Lead-210 results were less conclusive and may indicate mixing of the sediment through bioturbation or other physical processes. Biomass and species richness of mollusc remains also showed varying patterns throughout the cores; results from 4 sites suggested that biomass and species richness declined over time, 3 sites showed improvements over time whilst 2 sites showed little change.
These results show the difficulties inherent in interpreting changes to marine biological communities over time. However it is clear that human activities have greatly altered coastal marine ecosystems and it is important that we continue to try and understand the extent of change in order to effectively protect and manage these systems in the future. The potential application of these dating methods in subtidal marine environments and possible interpretation of the results will be discussed.
Laing et al. (2005). A feasibility study of native oyster ( Ostrea edulis ) stock regeneration in the United
Kingdom. CARD Project FC1016, Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science. 97 pp.
JNCC (2010). UK Priority Species data collation: Ostrea edulis Version 2. Joint Nature Conservation
Committee, 22 pp.
Hiscock et al. (2005). Marine Health Check 2005: a report to gauge the health of the UK’s sea-life.
Godalming, WWF-UK. 80 pp.
21

Keynote Presentation:
Improving estimates of ice mass loss from Antarctica using records of Holocene relative sea level (RSL) change
Dominic Hodgson[1] Stephen Roberts[1] Mieke Sterken[2] Elie Verleyen[2] Wim Vyverman[2] Koen
Sabbe[2] Michael Bentley[3] Pippa Whitehouse[3]
1. British Antarctic Survey
2. University of Ghent
3. Durham University
Email: daho@bas.ac.uk
The recent disintegration of Antarctic Peninsula ice-shelves, and the associated accelerated discharge and retreat of continental glaciers has highlighted the contribution of melting ice from Antarctica to future sea-level rise. At present, increasing ice mass loss in Antarctica is dominated by changes in the
Antarctic Peninsula and the Amundsen Sea sector of West Antarctica. However, there is relatively little geological data constraining the geometry, volume and melt history of the Antarctic Ice Sheet after
Termination 1 and during the Holocene. In this talk I will present new relative sea level data from
Antarctica based on a combination of geomorphological evidence of former marine limits and records from dated marine-freshwater transitions in sediments deposited in isolation basins. The isolation of the lake basins was determined using a combination of sedimentological, microfossil and biogeochemical markers. A case study will be presented from the north-eastern Antarctic Peninsula which shows that relative sea level fell from a maximum of 14.91 m above present at c. 8000 cal yr BP at a rate of 2.73 mm per year, declining to 2.16 mm per year between 6918 and 2958 cal yr BP, to
1.68 mm per year between 2958 and 1859 cal yr BP, and finally to 0.28 mm per year during the last
1859 calibrated years. The relative sea level curve presented here improves the spatial coverage of relative sea level data in the Antarctic, and is compared with glacio-isostatic adjustment model runs for this location during the mid-late Holocene. Combined the geological constraints provide key data for the glacial-isostatic correction required by satellite-derived gravity measurements of contemporary ice mass loss, and can be used to better assess the future contribution of the Antarctic Ice Sheet to rising sea levels.
22

Marginal environments and human impact in Greenland and the Norwegian Arctic
Eva Panagiotakopulu, Paul Buckland
School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Drummond Street, EH8 9XP eva.p@ed.ac.uk
One aspect of environmental change in the Arctic is related to the impact of prehistoric and early historic populations in coastal areas, where without the supplement of grain traded for fish, winter survival required a nomadic lifestyle relying upon an uncertain balance between inland fish and game exploitation and the abundance of the sea. Coastal areas of Southwest Greenland and Northwest
Norway present contrasting patterns. Detailed palaeoecological investigations, principally of insect faunas from these areas, provide information about alterations of the surrounding landscapes and changing climate, and also about the activities of the groups. In late Holocene Greenland, Saqqaq and
Thule Inuit show distinct similarities in terms of their associated faunas and the isolation of the incoming Thule from the departing Norse in the medieval Greenlandic landscape is perhaps typified by the fact that only the sedentary latter had fleas. In coastal Northwest Norway , occupation by the Sámi, and their predecessors begins at least as early as the mid Holocene. Although the basic vegetation is similarly one of arctic oceanic heath, the frequency with which it was burnt is noteworthy; in addition, limited agriculture was possible in the more sheltered fjords. Insect faunas from the early sites show changes in the indigenous fauna, and provide information on the episodic nature of these early settlements. Much later, as urbanization further south was underpinned by Arctic and sub-Arctic fisheries, settlements along the coast became more permanent and medieval and early post-medieval expansion is marked by farm mounds, whose well-preserved organic deposits provide evidence not only of living conditions and use of local resources but also of import of more southerly commodities.
23

Shells on a beach: developing high resolution chronologies of sea-level change and coastal evolution in the high arctic
Antony J Long, Matt Strzelecki, Charlotte Bryant 1
Department of Geography, Durham University, Science Site, South Road, Durham DH1 3LE, UK.
A.J.Long@Durham.ac.uk
1 NERC Radiocarbon Laboratory, Scottish Enterprise Technology Park, Rankine Avenue, East
Kilbride, Glasgow, G75 0QF, UK, c.bryant@nercrcl.gla.ac.uk
Flights of raised beaches are emblematic of high arctic coastlines. Often their ages are established by the radiocarbon dating of marine shells contained within their sediments. However, these are rarely in situ and therefore can have large age and height uncertainties when used in sea-level studies. These uncertainties may not be critical where the magnitude of sea-level change is large, for example several tens of meters of sea-level change over Holocene timescales. But they are important if one is interested in developing detailed chronologies for the last few centuries to millennia, when sea-level was within a few meters of present. We address the problem of using shells to date beach ridges in this preliminary report of a new method for dating raised beaches using the marine bivalve Astarte borealis . Working at a test site in Spitsbergen, we first assess the age of recently deposited, articulated valves of juvenile A. borealis from the current storm beach and then reconstruct the age of one mid Holocene beach.
Juvenile specimens of A. borealis are washed onto the beach under storm conditions attached to seaweed, which becomes incorporated into the beach face and crest. Over time, the seaweed decays and leaves behind still-articulated specimens of A. borealis that become preserved in the beach.
Using a bomb-spike marine calibration curve from the Barents Sea developed from known-age fish otoliths (Kalish et al., 2001), we argue that three specimens of A. borealis collected from the presentday beach died either in AD 1962 or, more likely, in the same calendar year of sample collection (AD
2010). Careful excavation of the top 10-20 cm of Holocene beach crests show that paired samples of juvenile A. borealis are preserved. Three separate pairs of A. borealis from a test beach of late
Holocene age yield radiocarbon ages of 4315±37, 4382±38 and 4188±37. The results of this pilot study demonstrate the potential of this approach and a fuller programme of dating is currently underway to develop a detailed record of late Holocene sea-level change in this high arctic setting.
Kalish, J.M., Nydal, R., Nedreaas, K.H., Burr, G.S., and Eine, G.L.2001. A time history of pre- and post-bomb radiocarbon in the Barents Sea derived from Arcto-Norwegian cod otoliths. Radiocarbon,
43: 843 –855.
24

Keynote Presentation:
Searching for eustasy in mid-late Holocene sea-level records from the Indian Ocean
Sarah Woodroffe and Antony Long
Geography Department, Durham University, Science Laboratories, South Road, Durham, DH1 3LE
The search for a eustatic sealevel curve was the ‘holy grail’ of sea-level research in the 1960s, but geophysical modellers have since shown us that relative sea level worldwide deviates significantly from a single eustatic value over time and space. However recent advances in modelling are now proving that, in a few areas on the planet such as the western Indian Ocean, vertical deflections of the ocean surface and solid Earth oppose each other so that the net signal is very close to the eustatic value for at least part of the post-Last Glacial Maximum period (Milne and Mitrovica, 2008) . This paper will describe a recent study to reconstruct mid-late Holocene relative sea-level (RSL) changes from the Seychelles, in the western Indian Ocean to understand eustatic melt during this critical time period, which can provide background, pre-industrial rates of global ice melt and sea-level change.
The main granitic islands of the Seychelles are mountainous with narrow coastal fringes that support small areas of estuarine mangrove as well as extensive beach deposits and fringing coral reefs. We cored several fossil mangrove deposits across three of the main islands and searched for microfossils in fossil and modern sediments to use as sea-level indicators. An absence of microfossils in fossil cores made us turn to other sedimentological techniques to reconstruct sea-level changes. Dating also proved problematic, and as a result made us change our research aims from reconstructing decimetre-scale continuous sea-level changes to establishing whether or not a sea-level high stand has occurred here in the mid-late Holocene. This objective is important because geophysical models predict a small (c. 0.5 m) high stand in the Seychelles despite its close approximation to eustasy in the mid-late Holocene. By investigating sediments in present freshwater environments close to highest tide level for evidence of mangrove sedimentation, we are able to constrain the magnitude of any high stand and produce a chronology for mid-late Holocene RSL changes in this location.
Despite problems with microfossil-based techniques and conventional dating methods we have been able to reconstruct broad-scale patterns in mid-late Holocene RSL from this important location in western Indian Ocean region. The results will feed into geophysical models and provide important constraints on the integrated global ice melt signal over the past few thousand years.
Milne, G.A. and Mitrovica, J.X., 2008: Searching for eustasy in deglacial sea-level histories,
Quaternary Science Reviews , 27: 2292-2302.
25

Holocene mangrove and sea level changes in the northwest coast of Zanzibar, Tanzania
Paramita Punwong 1 , Rob Marchant 1 , Katherine Selby 2
1 York Institute of Tropical Ecosytem Dynamics, Environment Department, University of York, UK
2 Environment Department, University of York, UK
Holocene mangrove vegetation and environmental reconstruction were studied through three sediment cores from Makoba, on the northwest coast of Zanzibar, Tanzania, using pollen and stratigraphical analyses set within a radiocarbon dated chronological framework. A vegetation survey of mangrove along elevation gradients was used to establish the relationship with sea level altitude of the major vegetation associations using a differential GPS in order to characterize low, middle and high tide. Three cores were collected perpendicular to the shoreline and dated at 4239 14 C yr BP,
7202 14 C yr BP and 5078 14 C yr BP from the base at seaward, central and landward cores, respectively. Initial analysis of a 400 cm core from the central site showed that mangrove, which was dominated by Rhizophora , occupied the study area at least 7202 14 C yr BP indicating this area had probably been influenced by sea water. Subsequently, the increase of outer seaward mangrove species, Sonneratia together with the occurrence of shell fragments, probably reflected a rise in sea level. It is likely that this area became a lower intertidal flat until around 1695 14 C yr BP. A subsequent increase of grasses associated with Brugueira/Ceriops occurred suggesting a lowering of sea level or a greater influence of terrestrial input, up until the present day. Future work will develop the application of the modern link between mangrove zonations and altitude with respect to sea level, to infer past sea level changes through the development of a transfer function. The implications of past sea level changes on archaeological sites, including settlement, abandonment and availability of resources, will be also studied in order to understand the effects on societal developments along the East African coast.
26

Mid-Holocene Palaeocoastlines of the Red Sea – Evidence for Hydro-isostacy, Tectonics or both?
Matthew Williams matthew.williams@york.ac.uk
University of York, Department of Archaeology
This paper aims to shed light on the little known palaeoshorelines of the Red Sea, investigating their provenance and forces behind their formation. A multi-disciplinary project utilising techniques from archaeology and coastal geomorphology has established the presence of extensive mid-Holocene palaeocoastlines in the Red Sea. Glacial-isostacy is well documented on the fringes of the former ice sheets; however many palaeocoastlines in the lower latitudes have previously been attributed to an illusive and po orly resolved “mid-Holocene high stand in sea level” by researchers looking for analogy with this.
The coastlines of the Red Sea have had relatively little research undertaken; a quick review of known prehistoric coastal archaeological sites revealed that they are often located many kilometres inland, frequently on palaeocoastlines. This project focused on the Farasan Islands in the Southern Red Sea,
Saudi Arabia. Satellite image interpretation, false colour images and digital terrain models allowed for a broad categorisation of the palaeocoastlines of the archipelago which was later confirmed by field survey. Their provenance was further refined by the presence of nearly three thousand prehistoric shell midden sites, of which some have been radiometrically and geochronologically dated.
Geoarchaeological investigations of deposits associated with these palaeocoastlines have uncovered a sequence of sedimentation and in-filling.
A key question which has arisen as a result of this project is whether the palaeocoastlines are a result of hydro-isostacy, tectonics, or both. To further complicate this there are more than one type of tectonics in the region; the most well known tectonic force in the region is rifting. However oil industry investigations have revealed salt tectonics and diapir formation which has clearly driven coastal change in some areas. This paper hopes to show how multidisciplinary study can shed light on such questions, as well as raising many more.
27

Key note Presentation:
Future Coastal Management – approaches and challenges
Nigel Pontee
Coastal Science and Planning Team Leader, Halcrow, Swindon, UK.
1 . Introduction
The UK coast is some 12,400 kilometres long and is highly varied in terms of:

Its geology, erodability and sediment supply;



The driving hydrodynamic variables (e.g. wave and tidal energies);
The rates of sea level rise/fall; and,
It’s commercial, residential, agricultural and recreational usage (Figure 1).
Figure 1: The UK’s varied coastline
Coastal areas are subject to an increasing number of physical, environmental, socio-economic pressures. Flood and coastal erosion risk management (FCERM) needs to balance these pressures and this requires the development of sustainable long term and large scale strategic approaches.
This paper will discuss:
 the potential changes that may occur to our coasts in the future;

 the strategic management framework which exists for FCERM; and, the issues and challenges that exist for coastal managers.
2. Future coastal changes
Sea level is rising and, even without potential increases in storminess, this has the potential to give rise to increases in wave energy in coastal locations. The impacts of these changes on coastal morphology is critically dependant on sediment supply. In areas of limited supply, or in areas which are prevented from retreating by hard defences or rising land, the expected trends in sea level and wave energy can be expected to give rise to beach lowering and barrier breaching. This has impacts for natural habitats and coastal defences. In other areas, increases in sea level may lead to the increased onshore movement of sediment by tidal currents; whilst increased wave energy may lead to greater alongshore movement of sediment leading to some areas of erosion, but also some of accretion. Changes in rainfall patterns also have the potential to change the dynamics of estuaries, through fluvial inputs; and cliff systems through changing ground water conditions.
In order to be able to manage coastal change it is necessary to be able to predict likely future changes over timescales of 10s to 100s of years, and spatial scales of 10s to 100s of kilometers. Unfortunately this is easier said than done, and not only is the nature of climate change and sea level rise uncertain, but our ability to predict coastal changes over the long term for any given set of driving parameters is limited. The behavior of some coastal systems, such as dunes and salt marshes, may also be dependant the response of vegetation to changing CO
2
, temperature and rainfall. Dealing with these uncertainties is just one aspect of coastal management.
28

2. Strategic shoreline management approach
Over the last 20 years the UK Government has developed a strategic approach to coastal management and both England and Wales have recently published national FCERM strategies. Strategic approaches are needed to deal with complex situations which might involve conflicts between local politics (defend at all costs), national politics (funding constraints), and international nature conservation law (protection of sites restricting intervention). In England and Wales, the strategic approach has been implemented through a three level hierarchy of plans and schemes consisting of Shoreline Management Plans (SMPs), Coastal Strategies, and
Schemes. A key aspect of this framework is the prioritisation of governmental funding for schemes which has been through a number of iterations in recent years. The paper will explain this approach in more detail.
3. Issues and challenges
In the face of a changing climate, limited budgets and the importance of natural processes, it will not be affordable, or appropriate, to continue with Hold the line policies at all currently defended locations. In practice this means that future SMPs and strategies are likely to recommend more Managed Realignment or No Active
Intervention polices. In some areas, such polices will lead to changes in land use and the potential loss of land and properties, which may be currently afforded protection from flooding and erosion risks. Experience in many
SMPs has highlighted that such changes can be popular with local residents and landowners. Defra’s Coastal
Change Pathfinder programme is exploring new ways of adapting to coastal change and planning to enable communities to prepare for change has begun in many areas. This paper will present a number of case studies which exemplify different aspects of adaptation.
At the present time, changes to the funding of FCERM schemes, austerity measures and the Localism Bill present a number of threats to this strategic approach. A key concern is that the greater involvement of local stakeholders and third party funders may lead to demands for schemes that meet local needs but are unsustainable in the long term or have adverse affects further afield. This paper will outline these risks.
Over the next decade some of the most important coastal management issues are the need to:

 establish adequate long term budgets to allow long term management policies to be implemented; improve consultation processes, so that local communication can get involved in developing plans to adapt to coastal changes;
 develop workable approaches for allowing the privatisation of defences in some areas; and,
 develop a clear and just Governmental policy on compensation for property losses associated with flood and erosion.
4. Conclusions
Future climate change and sea level rise will continue to drive coastal recession in many areas, although predicting the magnitudes and timings of such change remains difficult. Taking decisions for coastal defence in the UK has been vastly improved by adoption of a strategic approach. Nevertheless, the continued development of sustainable solutions presents significant challenges. Proposed changes to the funding of
FCERM schemes, austerity measures and the Localism Bill all present a number of threats to the strategic approach which need to be managed. In some areas, limited budgets may result in changes in management policy including providing temporary defence measures, realigning defences further landwards, or even ceasing maintenance altogether and relocating assets out of high risk areas. For many communities, such adaptive measures may well represent new approaches. Experience has shown that extensive consultation is likely to be required in order to convince local residents of the necessity of such approaches.
29

500,000 years of Archaeology from England’s South Coast: Implications for understanding the past and managing the future.
Andrew Bicket 1* , Simon Davidson 2 , Jack Russell 2
1 Wessex Archaeology Edinburgh, 7/9 North St David Street, Edinburgh, EH2 1AW
2 Wessex Archaeology, Portway House, Old Sarum Park, Salisbury SP4 6EB
* a.bicket@wessexarch.co.uk
This paper draws upon recent work by Wessex Archaeology in the vicinity of the Solent and the Isle of
Wight, southern England to contextualise and examine the implications of climate change, sea level rise and human activity over relatively large spatial and temporal scales. Understanding these changes is vital for effective management and future planning especially during the current period of coastal and offshore development which will likely intensify in the near future. We take a holistic approach and consider the archaeological record from the land to the sea and from submerged prehistory to the erosion of historical coastal sites. Offshore, the archaeological portion of the South
Coast Regional Environmental Characterisation (REC) (James et al . 2010) has highlighted a palimpsest of submerged palaeolandscapes dating to various periods over the last 500,000 years.
Whilst providing critical evidence for research on the interpretation and synthesis of prehistory
(preserved both on and offshore). Such large-scale projects contribute significantly to management of offshore cultural heritage. This is particularly important in support of industry and development as a part of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) processes required for licensing. At the coast, knowledge of the status of cultural heritage has been enhanced for present and future management by Rapid Coastal Zone Assessments (RCZAs) such as the recently completed New Forest RCZA
(Wessex Archaeology 2011). Threats to heritage from natural processes and / or human activity have been identified through extensive desk-based study, collaborative fieldwork and landscape reconstruction. In response to the increase in coastal and offshore development, as well as changing priorities driven by climate change, considerable management resources are provided by these kinds of projects. These include evidence-based palaeolandscape reconstructions, verified gazetteers of cultural heritage assets and baseline assessments that provide invaluable context from which to more accurately gauge positive and negative impacts upon heritage in support of cost-effective and sustainable development. With this paper we aim to illustrate the potential for archaeological research to play a central role for providing long temporal context for climate change and sea level rise; and also as a nucleus for combining the products of the disparate disciplines involved in the management of coastal and offshore resources for example geomorphology, geology, ecology and hydrography.
James, J W C., Pearce, B., Coggan, R A., Arnott, S H L., Clark, R., Plim, J F., Pinnion, J., Barrio
Frójan, C., Gardiner, J P, Morando, A, Baggaley, P A., Scott, G., Bigourdan, N., 2010. The South
Coast Regional Environmental Characterisation. British Geological Survey Open Report
OR/09/51.essex Archaeology, 2011. New Forest Rapid Coastal Zone Assessment Survey, Phase 3:
Final Report. Unpublished report, ref: 72201.02.
30

31

The Churchill Barriers, Scotland: 70 years on
Selby, K.A.
1 and Langdon, P.G.
2
1.
Corresponding author: Environment Department, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD.
Katherine.selby@york.ac.uk
2.
Geography and Environment, University of Southampton, University Road, Southampton, SO17
1BJ.
The Churchill Barriers were constructed between 1940-1945 to protect the British Naval Fleet situated in Scapa Flow. Since emplacement the barriers have had a major effect of the coastal and marine environment by changing the flow of currents within, and drainage of, Scapa Flow, and causing sediment to be deposited along the length of the barriers. This research investigated the effects of the barriers on the coastal environment by examining nearshore and terrestrial cores using geochemical and diatom analyses, 210 Pb and 137 Cs dating and detailed geomorphological mapping and surveying.
Analyses of a core taken from near Barrier 1 reveal an eutrophic environment dominated throughout the cores sequence (tentatively dated from 1932 to present). However, an increase in calcium carbonate, combined with increases in calcium, strontium and sodium and a small change in diatom composition is thought to relate to barrier construction around 1940-1945. Quarries around the barriers were established to provide rubble for the concrete block construction and leaching from these is likely to be responsible for the elevated levels of the nutrients. This increase in calcium and strontium was also seen in a core taken near Barrier 4 with coincident change in diatom flora and again tentatively dated to 1940. On the east side of Barrier 4 a large area of sand deposition has occurred as a result of the sheltered environment afforded by the barrier. Sediment has been transported northwards by longshore drift and moved on shore from offshore sand bars. An extensive dune field (around 113000 m 2 ) which is mostly vegetated has established. There is also some sand accumulation on the west side of the barrier although this is much smaller in extent. Moving northwards, sand accumulation has also occurred on the east of Barriers 3, 2 and 1 although, the extent of the accumulation decreases and is not visible on the west of the barriers. This contemporary study of an artificial barrier system has provided an insight into the evolution and alteration of the coastal environment, and this knowledge can be applied to interpretation of palaeo systems and also to inform future management of such structures.
32

Sea-level rise and coastal vulnerability: the case of the Southwest Main Line
David Dawson 1* , Roland Gehrels 1 , Alistair Hunt 2 , Jon Shaw 1
1 School of Geography, University of Plymouth,
2 Department of Economics and International Development, University of Bath
*Corresponding author: david.dawson@plymouth.ac.uk
The coastal section of the London to Penzance railway line (Dawlish-Teignmouth) lies very close to sea level and has been susceptible to frequent closure during high seas and storm events. As the main connection for the southwest of England to the rest of the UK, it is a vital transport link for the Devon and Cornwall economy.
Current understanding of future sea-level rise in the region (e.g., Lowe et al., 2009) is compromised by a lack of reliable geological data on which to establish accurate future sea-level projections (Gehrels, 2010). Furthermore, the impacts – in engineering and economic terms – of potential sea-level change on the long-term functioning of the main railway are unclear, and future policy making and planning are compromised by a similar gap in scientific knowledge. An applied geographical investigation was undertaken at the University of Plymouth, funded by Great Western Research, Network Rail and the Devon and Cornwall County councils, to establish the extent to which future sea-level changes will impact upon the Southwest’s main railway line. The central aim of the project carried three objectives: (1) to establish accurate late Holocene sea-level trends in order to validate geophysical models used in current future sea-level projections (e.g. Bradley et al., 2009) in the southwest of
England; (2) to establish the likely impacts of future sea-level change on the functioning of the Dawlish-
Teignmouth railway line; and (3) to integrate climate and socio-economic futures (scenarios) in an internally consistent manner for future use in regional policy debates. The interdisciplinary nature of this problem required geographical methods that bridged all aspects of the discipline. From the collection and interpretation of fossil salt-marsh sediments in the field, to the use of transport appraisal and climate costing techniques, the findings provide valuable insight into the problem for both the academic community and the region’s decision makers. We estimate that during the last 2000 years the coast of south Devon has subsided at a rate of ~1.1 mm/yr, generating a relative sea-level rise of ~0.9 mm/yr. The geophysical model (used to determine regional sea-level projections) underestimates the geologically estimated coastal subsidence rate by only 14%, which would generate an additional sea-level rise, compared to predicted values, of 0.015 m by 2100 (Gehrels, et al., in press ). Based on an empirical trend between increases in sea-level changes and rail functioning during the last
40 years, the corrected sea-level projections provide input for establishing future days with line restrictions due to overtopping on the Southwest Main Line. Impacts to both the Southwest economy (e.g., rail users) and the track owners have been determined, and integrating these forecasts with socio-economic scenarios (SES) has highlighted the important interaction between climate, socio-economic trends and future vulnerability. In a worst case scenario (e.g., high emissions/World Markets), rail services are predicted to be disrupted (on average) for around 35% of the winter by 2060. By this stage, the cost of these disruptions will have exceeded the capital needed for constructing a new alternative inland route. As such, it is vital that consultation begins now to enable sustainable transport planning for the future of the region.
Bradley, S., Milne, G., Teferle, N., Bingley, R., Orliac, E. (2009). Glacial Isostatic Adjustment of the British Isles: New constraints from GPS measurements of crustal motion. Geophysical Journal International , 178, 14-22
Gehrels, W.R. (2010). Late Holocene land- and sea-level changes in the British Isles: implications for future sea-level predictions. Quaternary Science Reviews , 29, (13-14), 1648-1660
Gehrels, R., Dawson, D., Marshall, W. and Shaw, J. (in press) Using Holocene relative sea-level data to inform future sealevel predictions: an example from southwest England. Global and Planetary Change.
Accepted May 2011
Lowe, J. A., Howard, T. P., Pardaens, A., Tinker, J., Holt, J., Wakelin, S., Milne, G., Leake, J., Wolf, J., Horsburgh, K.,
Reeder, T., Jenkins, G., Ridley, J., Dye, S., and Bradley, S., (2009). UK Climate Projections science report: Marine and coastal projections . Met Office Hadley Centre, Exeter, UK
33

Geomorphological development of the North Norfolk Coast, UK - past, present and future
K. Pye and S.J. Blott
Kenneth Pye Associates Ltd, Crowthorne Enterprise Centre, Old Wokingham Road, Crowthorne,
Berkshire RG45 6AW (e.mail: k.pye@kpal.co.uk)
This presentation provides a review of geomorphological processes and shoreline changes (past, present and future) on the North Norfolk coast between Old Hunstanton and Sheringham. This lowland coast forms a coherent geomorphological unit, defined at each end by higher ground and changes in coastal orientation. Fourteen coastal geomorphological sub-units have been defined: (1)
Old Hunstanton to Thornham Barrier, (2) Thornham Harbour, (3) Thornham to Brancaster Barrier, (4)
Brancaster Harbour, (5) Scolt Head Island, (6) Burnham Harbour, (7) Burnham to Wells Barrier, (8)
Wells Harbour, (9) Lodge Marsh Barrier, (10) Warham and Stiffkey Marshes, (11) Blakeney Harbour,
(12) Blakeney Point, (13) Cley - Weybourne Barrier, (14) Weybourne to Sheringham Cliffs.This area has acted as a net sediment sink for the last 7000 years. The main source of sediment has been the floor of the adjoining North Sea, which includes till reworked in situ by marine processes, fluvial and coastal deposits formed during lower sea level, and sediments eroded from the coasts of Lincolnshire,
Northeast Norfolk and Holderness. The landward edge of the coastal deposits is defined by steeply rising ground, with the result that the sedimentary wedge has become narrower but thicker as sea level has risen. Shoreward retreat on the more exposed open parts of the coast has been offset by net westerly extension of barrier spits and barrier islands. This process, combined with the effects of embanking and reclamation, has reduced the tidal prism of the tidal inlets and small estuaries along the coast, leading tom shoaling and impaired navigation. Present-day sediment drift directions are variable, reflecting variations in shore orientation and exposure to waves and tidal currents. Where gravel is abundant, new shore-parallel bars and spits are formed, often enclosing shallow lagoons which trap mud and eventually evolve into saltmarsh. Where gravel is scarce, wide sandy beaches backed by low dunes predominate.
If sea level continues to rise at historical rates (1.5 - 3 mm/yr), or more rapidly as a result of climate change, and there are no major changes in sediment supply and wind/ wave climate, the following changes are forecast over the next 100 years: (a) continued retreat of the Cley-Salthouse ridge, (b) further westerly extension of the Blakeney Headland, (c) accelerated erosion of the Weybourne -
Sheringham cliffs, (d) continued shoaling of Blakeney, Wells and Burnham harbours, (e) vertical accretion of the marshes in line with sea level rise, (f) marsh edge erosion at Warham and Stiffkey,
(g) erosion of Wells Meals, Holkham Meals and Burnham Norton dunes, (h) erosion of most of the
Scolt Head Island frontage, resulting in more frequent over-washing of the central section, (i) renewed erosion of the Brancaster dunes, especially at the western end where a small embayment may develop next to the Royal West Norfolk Golf Club, (j) accelerated retreat of the Titchwell - Thornham dune shoreline, (k) accelerated erosion of the Holme Dunes frontage, (l) continued accretion on the
Gore Point to Hunstanton Golf Club frontage, and (m) beach erosion at Old Hunstanton.
34

R e c e n t s e d i m e n t a t i o n p r o c e s s e s , p a t t e r n s a n d c h r o n o l o g y o f t h e W e s t B e n g a l
S u n d a r b a n s
R o r y P . F l o o d 1 * , J u l i a n O r f o r d 1 , K e i t h B e n n e t t 1
1 School of Geography, Archaeology and Pa laeoecology, The Queen’s University of Belfast, Belfast,
BT7 1NN, UK
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +44 28 9097 3929
Email address: rflood02@qub.ac.uk
This project addresses late-Holocene relative sea-level rise and the mangrove sedimentology of the
Sundarbans Mangrove Forest, West Bengal, India. Sedimentary processes in mangrove systems are primarily impacted by a rise in sea-level since sedimentation is either induced as allochthonous by tidal deposition or autochthonous by plant material, which responds to tidal inundation. For mangroves to maintain elevations, organic matter accumulation is critical as mangrove systems are characterised by a lack of mineral sedimentation. Furthermore, organic matter accumulation has also been found to be a major controlling factor in the elevation of mangroves with respect to relative sea-level rise
(RSLR). Examining the impact of late-Holocene relative sea-level rise will allow for a clearer understanding of the processes affecting the deltaic-mangroves of the Sundarbans and may elucidate to the future of potential sea-level rise in the region. Elucidating the fate of sediment throughout the
Sundarbans is also a key component of this project, and provenance analysis will employ the use of organic geochemical proxies in this regard. Reconstruction of relative sea-levels has principally involved the use of microfossil assemblages as proxy indicators, however microfossil assemblages tend to be poorly preserved, infrequent or completely absent from mangrove coastal environments.
This project will provide new stable isotope, elemental ratios and pollen assemblage data for the
Sundarbans deltaic-mangrove system. The primary aim of this project is to examine relative sea-level change and the relationship that this has with sedimentary provenance and how the processes of relative sea-level fluctuations impact the Sundarbans. Three cores have been retrieved from island sites in the Sundarbans. Stable isotope (δ 13 C) and organic carbon and nitrogen elemental ratios (C/N) analysis of the three cores have shown a varying trend in the deposition of organic material.
35

Geomorphological impact by the 1498 Meio earthquake on the Enshunada coastline, Central
Japan.
Osamu Fujiwara 1 , Vanessa Heyvaert 2 , Masatomo Umitsu 3 , Eisuke Ono 4 , Toshifumi Yata 4 , Yoshiki
Sato 5
1 FUJIWARA Osamu, Geological Survey of Japan, AIST, Tsukuba city, Japan
2 HEYVAERT M.A. Vanessa, Geological Survey of Belgium, Brussels, Belgium
3 UMITSU Masatomo, Nara University, Nara city, Japan
4 ONO Eisuke, Niigata University, Niigata city, Japan
4 YATA Toshifumi, Niigata University, Niigata city, Japan
5 SATO Yoshiki, Kyushu University, Fukuoka city, Japan
Presenting author: Vanessa M.A. Heyvaert, Vanessa.heyvaert@naturalsciences.be
The palaeoenvironmental evolution of the Enshunada coastline, Hamamatsu area, located on the central island of Japan is investigated. More in particular the the impact of atsunami, generated by the
1498 Meio earthquake (M8.2-8.4) along the Nankai Through, on the geomorphological evolution of the
Enshunada coastline is investigated.
Historical sources document the sudden decline at the end of the 15 th century of an important harbour town Hashimoto, located along the river Hamana. This river connected the Pacific Ocean with a coastal embayment closed by a sand barrier (i.e. the present-day called Hamana lake) before the 15 th
Century.
During geological fieldwork (geoslicer and auger) the palaeochannel of the Hamana river was detected along the western side of the present-day Hamana coastal embayment. A detailed facies analysis of the undisturbed sediment cores was carried out.
On the basis of the sedimentological data, it is suggested that the Hamana river mouth became abruptly closed by the transport of huge volumes of sand by the Meio tsunami. This initiated the development of a marsh environment upstream along the channel. The same process, of sudden river mouth enclosure by tsunami-transported sediments was recently observed in the Northeast Japan during the great 2011 Sendai tsunami (Uda, T., 2011).
Moreover, our results show that due to the 1498 Meio tsunami, the Hamana back-barrier sheltered environment became again connected to the Pacific Ocean by breaching of its sand barrier. Both environmental changes (river mouth enclosure and barrier breaching) are synchronous with the sudden decline of the harbour town Hashimoto at the end of the 15 th century. This suggests that the breaking-off of the water route connecting the harbour town Hashimoto and Pacific Ocean potentially led to the de cline of the town.
Uda,T. (2011). Flush and renewal of a river mouth bar in the Natsui river, Fukushima Prefecture, during the great 2011 tsunami of the Tohoku Earthquake. http://www.omotehama.net/pdf/tsunamirep_34.pdf#search (cited 2011/06/11) (In Japanese).
36

Sedimentary and microfossil evidence for coastal land-level changes accompanying Chilean megathrust earthquakes
E . G a r r e t t 1 *
1 D e p a r t m e n t o f G e o g r a p h y , D u r h a m Un i v e r s i t y , S c i e n c e L a b o r a t o r i e s , S o u t h
R o a d , D u r h a m , D H 1 2 P S
* e d m u n d . g a r r e t t @ d u r h a m . a c . u k
In May 1960 south-central Chile was struck by the largest earthquake since the inception of modern seismic recording. The magnitude 9.5 event unlocked almost 1000 km of the fault that conveys the
Nazca plate beneath South America, causing vertical land surface deformation along the coast and a tsunami that spread across the Pacific Ocean. Records kept by Spanish settlers and visiting
Europeans describe the occurrence and effects of other analogous subduction megathrust earthquakes, including events in 1837, 1737 and 1575 within the 1960 rupture area. Holocene coastal sedimentary sequences in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska demonstrate that the instrumental or historical record may be too short to record the largest coseismic displacement that can be generated on a particular subduction zone. Furthermore, while previous investigations highlight variability in
Chilean earthquake magnitudes (Cisternas et al ., 2005), pre-20 th century rupture locations and lengths remain poorly constrained.
Here we present sedimentary and microfossil evidence for repeated rapid relative sea-level changes from a sheltered coastal location in the centre of the 1960 rupture area. We targeted current and former salt marsh areas as their stratigraphy may record changes in relative sea level over time. Four abrupt stratigraphic boundaries were traced through a 180 m long transect of hand-driven cores. We interpret spatially consistent changes from organic-rich salt marsh peats to minerogenic silts and clays as evidence for recurrent coseismic land subsidence, with coincident anomalous sand layers suggestive of tsunami deposition. Microfossil analyses support these interpretations, with modern intertidal diatom distributions providing quantitative reconstructions of the magnitude of coastal landlevel changes during successive earthquakes. The timing of each event is currently unknown; the sequence may record historical earthquakes including the poorly understood 18 th and 19 th century events, or may only preserve evidence for the larger ruptures of 1960 and 1575, in addition to two older events.
Cisternas M., Atwater B. F., Torrejon F., Sawai Y., Machuca G., Lagos M., Eipert A., Youlton C.,
Salgado I., Kamataki T., Shishikura M., Rajendran C. P., Malik J. K., Rizal Y., and Husni M. 2005
Predecessors of the giant 1960 Chile earthquake. Nature 437 , 404.
37

A proxy sea-level record from Iceland spanning the last 500 years using testate amoebae a Haynes, S., Gehrels, W.R., Daley, T., Saher, M., Barlow, N., and Barnett, R.
School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, Devon,
UK, PL4 8AA a Corresponding author: steffie.haynes@postgrad.plymouth.ac.uk
The aim of this project is to produce a high-resolution, proxy based sea-level record using fossil testate amoebae assemblages in saltmarsh sediments from Viđarhōlmi, Western Iceland. The site has undergone previous investigation in both 2006 (Gehrels et al.
2006a), and in 2010 (in progress); this project expands on the use of the more conventional salt-marsh proxies, foraminifera and diatoms.
The construction of training sets of testate amoebae to be used in sea-level reconstructions as yet remains confined to a handful of studies (Charman et al . 1998; Gehrels et al.
2001; Charman et al .
2002; Roe et al . 2002; Gehrels et al.
2006b; and Charman et al . 2010). Despite this, testate amoebae have great potential as a proxy for sea-level studies. The first sea-level rise reconstructions based upon UK and North American training sets showed high vertical precision of approximately ±5 cm
(Charman et al.
2010).
In this work, assemblage data tied to sea-level datum was used to create a site-specific training set.
Fossil material was calibrated using both local and existing training sets (Charman et al. 2002) to provide comparable sea-level reconstructions for the last 500 years. The performance of the reconstructions was assessed against studies based on foraminifera and diatoms as well as tidegauge measurements for the most recent section. The results of this study will feed into a multi-proxy sealevel record for this part of Iceland’s western coast.
Charman, D.J., Roe, H.M., and Gehrels, W.R. 1998. The use of testate amoebae in studies of sealevel change: a case study from the Taf Estuary, south Wales, UK. The Holocene. 8:(2) 209 –218.
Charman, D.J., Gehrels, R.W., Manning, C., and Sharma, C. 2010. Reconstruction of recent sea-level change using testate amoebae. Quaternary Research. 73 208 –219.
Gehrels, W.R., Roe, H.M., and Charman, D.J. 2001. Foraminifera, testate amoebae and diatoms as sea-level Indicators in UK salt marshes: a quantitative multiproxy approach. Journal of Quaternary
Science. 16: (3) 201 –220.
Gehrels, W.R., Marshal, W.A., Gehrels, M.J., Larsen, G., Kirby, J.R., Eri´ksson, J., Heinemeier, J., and
Shimmield, T. 2006a. Rapid sea-level rise in the North Atlantic Ocean since the first half of the nineteenth century. The Holocene. 16:7 949-965.
Gehrels, W.R., Hendon, D., and Charman, D.J. 2006b. Distribution of testate amoebae in salt marshes along the North American East Coast. Journal of Foraminiferal Research. 36: 3 201 –214.
Roe, H.M., Charman, D.J., and Gehrels, W.R. 2002. Fossil testate amoebae in coastal deposits in the
UK: implications for studies of sea-level change. Journal of Quaternary Science. 17:(5-6) 411 –429.
38

Dynamic of land-sea-transition zones acting as a sea level proxy:
Reconstruction of the palaeogeography in the coastal lowlands of the Jade Bay area during the
Holocene period
Martina Karle*, Achim Wehrmann
Sen ckenberg am Meer, Marine Research Dept., Südstrand 40, 26382 Wilhelmshaven, Germany
* Senckenberg am Meer, Marine Research Dept, Südstrand 40, 26382 Wilhelmshaven, Germany, mkarle@senckenberg.de
The climatic changes in the Quaternary have led to a series of large, rapid changes in the shallow marine environment and coastal lowlands of the Southern North Sea region. During the Holocene transgression the pleistocene landscape was gradually inundated and covered with marine deposits, starting with the low-lying river valley/estuary systems (F LEMMING & D AVIS 1994). The coastal lowland area which is in general 10-20 km wide is built up by a wedge-like body of Holocene coastal deposits.
These deposits are thinning out landward where they wedge out against the Pleistocene hinterland
(S TREIF 2004). The internal makeup of the Holocene deposits typically shows a cyclic alternation of transgressive overlaps (marine and brackish deposits overlying peat) with regressive overlaps (semiterrestrial peat overlying marine sediments), which is indicative of repeated shoreline displacements, both landward and seaward. It provides evidence that the fluctuating sea level is the driving force forming the architecture of the palaeolandscape.
By sedimentological and palaeoecological investigations on core data focussing on formerly existing vast salt marsh belts, silting-up zones as well as tidal channels, the position, structure and extension of the land-sea interface has been reconstructed giving an idea of the processes and interactions taking place during sea level changes. Facies analysis therefore leads to a reconstruction of different mean high water levels and their respective coastlines of the past 7500 years. In contrast to the highly dynamic proximal zones of the central tidal basin of the Jade Bay the more distal parts provide a high preservation potential due to the low hydraulic energy. Therefore the mainly fine grained sediments act as a sensitive archive of ecological changes in the past.
F LEMMING BW & D AVIS R A (1994): Holocene evolution, morphodynamics and sedimentology of the
Spiekeroog barrier island system (Southern North Sea). – Senckenbergiana maritima, 24: 117-155;
Frankfurt/M.
S TREIF H (2004): Sedimentary record of Pleistocene and Holocene marine inundations along the North
Sea coast of Lower Saxony, Germany. - Quaternary International, 112: 3-28; Amsterdam.
39

A palaeoecological approach to understand the impact of coastal change in the Isles of Scilly
Marta Perez-Fernandez, Ralph Fyfe, Roland Gehrels, Dan Charman.
Marta Perez-Fernandez: Phd student. University of Plymouth. Geography, Earth and Environmental
Sciences. 8 Kirkby Place. Plymouth. PL4 8AA
Dr. Ralph Fyfe. University of Plymouth
Professor Roland Gehrels. University of Plymouth
Professor Dan Charman. Exeter University marta.perez@plymouth.ac.uk
Relative sea-level rise is a key factor influencing the subsistence strategies of communities throughout the Holocene. The drowning or inundation of coastal areas has displaced communities as a result of loss or alteration of coastal ecosystems and resources. Island populations are more sensitive to coastal change owing to constraints on the extent and viability of the terrestrial resource base.
Through studying past sea-level rise and climate change alongside the archaeological and palaeoenvironmental record, we can gain a holistic picture of the drivers behind the shifting inhabitation of the coastal landscape. The Isles of Scilly, located 28 miles off the southwest coast of
England, provide a perfect case study for the response of past populations to marine inundation. The
Isles of Scilly preserve a dense and rich prehistoric archaeological landscape, and have been affected by over 5 m sea-level rise since the mid-Holocene, resulting in an estimated loss of over a third of the total land area, and the fragmentation of the main land masses.
This paper presents the results of stratigraphic field investigations and results from laboratory analyses of cores collected from the two main wetland areas of the Scillies (Higher Moors and Lower
Moors). Terrestrial pollen records are used to detect past changes in local vegetation; variations in the amount of sand in the cores is used to detect changes in past storminess. Chronological control will be provided through ongoing analyses using optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) and radiocarbon dating. These analyses will ultimately be combined with new models of past coastal change to assess the relationship between past societies and their coastal environment.
40

Clay diapirs in the coastal zone of eastern Gulf of Finland
K. Ploom, S. Suuroja and K. Suuroja
Geological Survey of Estonia; Kadaka tee 82, Tallinn 12618, Estonia k.ploom@egk.ee
During the Soviet time Russian researchers geologically mapped the eastern part of Estonian coastal waters (Gulf of Finland east of 27

E). Lately, in the course of 1:50 000 geological mapping of NE part of Estonian mainland, marine geological investigations were also started there by Geological Survey of Estonia. A 217 km set of profiles was made in the area using seismo-acoustic profiling system
EdgeTech 3200 XS, and controlled by 59 grip scoop samples.
One of the results was the discovery of “hilly” structures within Lower Cambrian clay and sandstone, with otherwise faint sub-horizontal seismic reflections. Geologists recognise similar structures a few kilometres behind the Baltic Klint (probably the world’s longest continuous system of coastal escarpments) for almost 200 years both in NW Estonia ( e.g.
so called “Vaivara Blue Hills”), and south of St. Petersburg, Russia (Dudergof Heights, dislocations at Popovka River, etc ). Historically oldest theory to explain these dislocations – tectonical – was, among others, intensely supported by R. I.
Murchison (Murchison et al.
, 1845). Nowadays most researchers ( e.g.
Miidel et al ., 1969) look at the structures as of glaciotectonic origin (mainly glacial erratics). The discovery of deformed beds in the coastal sea, north of Vaivara Blue Hills, strongly advocates for the third theory of diapiric origin.
According to this concept ( e.g.
Lobanov, 1977) during the (decay of) Quaternary glaciations uneven vertical load of glaciers forced weakly lithified Cambrian clay into domal anticlinal folds, just like salt diapirs. Authors suggest that the process was influenced by the presence of tectonic faults fracturing both the Lower Cambrian clay and competent Ordovician limestone cover. Such faults performed also as pathways routing highly pressurised subglacial water to deeper parts of clay, so increasing the ability of latter to swelling. The reshaping activity of glaciers contributed to the final touch up of structures.
Lobanov, J.N. (1977) The character of deformation in Dudergof Heights near Leningrad. Geotectonics ,
10(6), 435-440.
Miidel, A., Paap, Ü., Raukas, A., Rähni, E. (1969) On the origin of Vaivara Hills (Sinimäed) in NE
Estonia. Eesti NSV Teaduste Akadeemia Toimetised, Keemia, Geoloogia , 18(4), 370 –376 [in Russian, with English summary].
Murchison, R.I., Verneuil, E.; Keyserling, A. (1845) The Geology of Russia in Europe and the Ural
Mountains, vol. I. Geology. John Murray, London-Paris, 700 p.
41

Salt marsh archives of sea-level and vegetation change from Big River marsh,
SW Newfoundland, Canada.
Wright, A.J.
1 ,Selby, K.A.
2 , van de Plassche, O 1 †, Roe, H.M.
3 van der Borg, K.
4 de Jong 4 , A.F.M.
1 Dept. Marine Biogeology, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Netherlands (a.j.wright@vu.nl)
2 Environment Department, University of York, Heslington, York
3 School of Geography, Archaeology and Palaeoecology , Queen’s University, Belfast
4 Faculty of Science, Universiteit Utrecht, Netherlands
Salt marshes are dynamic inter-tidal environments which possess an intrinsic vertical and horizontal relationship with sea level. Organisms living within this saline and brackish environment inhabit specific locations within the marsh, allowing past environmental conditions to be reconstructed from salt marsh cores. This research aims to test the potential of salt marshes in SW Newfoundland as archives of regional relative sea-level and vegetation change.
Cores of salt marsh peat extracted from Big River marsh were analysed for fossil foraminifera and pollen and AMS radiocarbon dating of plant macrofossil remains (palaeomarsh-surface indicators) provide the chronology. [What about 210Pb?] We establish a database of modern foraminiferal distributions within adjacent Hynes Brook and Big River marshes by analysing surface sediment samples collected at high resolution vertical intervals along multiple transect lines.
We develop age-depth models using wiggle-match dating and iterative LOWESS smoothing, and apply the modern analogue technique (MAT) to gauge the similarity between modern and fossil foraminiferal assemblages. Weighted averaging-based transfer-function methods extract the elevation of species optima and tolerance within the local tidal frame, and are used to reconstruct the height at which fossil foraminifera assemblages formed relative to palaeo-tide levels. We present and discuss the results for the upper 2 core sections (0-130 cm).
Whilst the modern high marsh assemblages are co-dominated by Balticammina pseudomacrescens and Jadammina macrescens , only the latter dominates the fossil record, with Tiphotrocha comprimata and Trochammina inflata notable in the upper 55 cm and pulses of Haplophragoides spp. below 40 cm. Combining J. macrescens and B. pseudomacrescens (as Trochammina macrescens ) reduces the number of fossil samples with poor MAT scores (30-8%) with no impact on reconstructed palaeomarsh-surface elevations.
Tree pollen, particularly pine and birch, are present throughout the Big River core record, with subordinate hazel and alder. The herbaceous taxa are dominated by sedges, although at certain horizons sea arrowgrass pollen increases, perhaps suggesting a more saline environment and higher relative sea levels. Ragweed pollen has a very low presence, perhaps suggesting limited land clearance around the site, although there is some Plantago lanceolata recorded suggesting arable activities in the area. Charcoal is present throughout the profile.
14 calibrated 14 C AMS dates in the upper metre span 951 yrs (19991048 AD, 2σ), and both agedepth models indicate an increase in the rate of PMS accumulation centred around 45 cm (mid 1700’s
AD). This is coincident with an increase in organic carbon content recorded by loss-on-ignition, dominance of grass and sedge pollen and a pulse of Haplophragmoides spp. in the foraminifera record, which suggest a less saline environment at this time.
42