Summary

Coastlines offer some of the best scenery and recreation areas, yet they also rank among the most hazardous areas to live. The world’s coastline extends for about 273,000 miles, and nearly half of the world’s population lives within 60 miles of the shoreline. The coastal zone is extremely critical for the world’s economy, culture, and future survival, but it is also one of the most hazardous environments and the site of most of the world’s deadliest disasters.

The Coast focuses on the characteristic landforms and environments found in the coastal zone as well as the processes that form these landforms. Coverage also includes the many coastal hazards that threaten our environment, including cliff erosion from wave and storm action, the hazards associated with powerful tides, and the consequences of long-shore sediment transport. In addition to an examination of some of the worst coastal disasters that have occurred from 1900 to 2007—including Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, a special chapter is devoted to the city of New Orleans, including its geological and natural history and why it is so at risk for coastal disasters. Enhanced with vivid photographs taken by the author, this book is a must for middle and high school students with an interest in this fascinating topic.

Chapters include:

• Characteristic Landforms and Environments of the Coastal Zone
• Origin of Coastal Hazards: Coastal Processes
• Effects of Rising Sea Levels and Coastal Subsidence
• Examples of Coastal Hazards and Disasters (1900–2007)
• New Orleans: The City Most at Risk for Coastal Disaster in the United States.

Specifications

Black-and-white photographs and line illustrations. Index. Glossary. Further reading. Web sites. Sidebars. Tables.

About the Author(s)

Timothy Kusky holds a Ph.D. degree in Earth and planetary sciences from Johns Hopkins University, and is the Paul C. Reinert Professor of Natural Sciences at Saint Louis University in Missouri and the director of the Center for Environmental Sciences in St. Louis. He has published more than 600 research papers and articles in journals such as Science, Journal of Geophysical Research, and Tectonics, and more than 20 books including Geological Hazards. Kusky is also the author of Facts On File's acclaimed Encyclopedia of Earth Science.