Kenneth Pye Associates Ltd.
 Scientific Research, Consultancy and Investigations

              
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Sediment Survey of the Sefton Coast
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Project funded by the Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council

Recent years have seen growing interest in monitoring of particle size in coastal and estuarine environments, both in terms of the information they provide about sediment transport and accretion/erosion trends, and the likely consequences for biological populations (e.g. invertebrates and birds) and recreational appeal.  Changes in particle size distributions at a point over time can provide an indicator of changes in energy conditions and provide an early warning of the onset of coastal erosion/accretion.

Nearly 300 sediment samples were collected from the Sefton coast, NW England, during the summer of 2003 by the Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council.  Sampling covered the foreshore between Seaforth (near the mouth of the Mersey Estuary) and Crossens (on the southern shore of the Ribble Estuary).  Samples were collected along 30 profiles spaces at intervals of between 1 and 2 km along the coast, and at distances of 50, 100, 150, 200, 300, 400, 500, 750 and 1000 m from the top of the beach, to provide greater resolution on the upper beach.

The particle size distribution was analysed by Kenneth Pye Associates Ltd. using a Coulter LS230 Laser Granulometer, which measures particles in the range 0.4 µm to 2000 µm.  Particle size statistics were generated both by the laser granulometer software and the in-house 'GRADISTAT' software package.  Spatial variations in particle size were illustrated by along-shore and across-shore profiles (plotted in Microsoft Excel) and contours maps (generated in the Golden Software Surfer package):

Along-shore profile of mean grain size
at 150 m chainage

  
Cross-shore profile of modal grain size
near Formby Point.

         Contour map of mean grain size                                            Contour map of textural class

Publications and Reports

Pye, K. and Blott, S.J. (2004). Sefton Coast: Comparison of Intertidal Sediment Surveys in 1996 and 2003: Results Summary and Supplementary Interpretative Report. Kenneth Pye Associates Ltd., Internal Investigation Report IR003, 14 pp.

Pye, K. and Blott, S.J. (2004). Sefton Coast: Analysis of Intertidal Sediment Cores, February 2004. Kenneth Pye Associates Ltd., Internal Investigation Report IR004, 12 pp.

Pye, K. and Blott, S.J. (2003). Sefton Coast Intertidal Sediment Survey 2003: Results Summary and Interpretative Report. Report to Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council. Kenneth Pye Associates Ltd., External Investigation Report ER502, 78 pp.

Saye, S.E. and Pye, K. (2003). Particle size variation in beach and dune sediments on the Sefton coast, NW England: Nature and Significance. Kenneth Pye Associates Ltd., Internal Research Report IR001, 66 pp.

Kenneth Pye Associates Ltd. - Environmental Consultants
Page last modified: July 11, 2007