The Sea‐Defence Value of Salt Marshes: Field Evidence From North Norfolk

Approaches to coastal management have focused increasingly on 'soft' engineering methods such as beach/foreshore recharge or the managed realignment of coastal defences. In this context, the creation/ maintenance of salt marshes is often seen as being of ecological and flood-defence importance. However, until recently, no field data of wave attenuation over Northern European salt marshes had been available; therefore the debate on the sea-defence value of salt marshes has remained highly speculative. This paper (a) reviews results from a field and numerical modelling study at Stiffkey, north Norfolk, (b) presents a scientifically based argument for the evaluation of salt marshes as part of sea-defence schemes, and (c) discusses the relationship between hydrodynamic parameters, salt-marsh surface characteristics, and possible management implications and engineering guidelines.