Coastal geomorphology of Port Dickinson and Desura Malaysia and its implications for coastal zone management

Syed Abdullah, Sharifah Mastura (1983) Coastal geomorphology of Port Dickinson and Desura Malaysia and its implications for coastal zone management. University of Southampton, Doctoral Thesis.

Abstract

The thesis opens with a discussion of current trends in applied coastal geomorphology, and an introduction to the Malaysian experience in coastal planning and management. For non-geomorphological readers, a brief background description of the processes, materials and form of the coastal system is provided. This is followed by a perspective of world and regional trends of coastal change, and a literature survey related specifically to the coast of Peninsular Malaysia. A description of research project design and technique (concentrating on its reconnaissance nature) is also given in this section. The second part of the thesis gives the results of a coastal case I study at Desaru in the extreme south-east of the peninsula. The physical and cultural background of Desaru is dealt with briefly to provide a management context before embarking on the five types of management relevant geomorphological data analysis used. The first analytical category concerns sediment particle size statistics which give a good indication of the processes operating on the coast. The statistical analysis of process and environmental variables gives significant results on process inter-relationships, and is a good tool for identifying coastal pattern and for providing a basis for land-use development or hazard zoning. The beach profile analysis gives an overall picture of morphological changes during the South-West Monsoon and North-East Monsoon. Wave refraction analysis is used to estimate the distribution of the wave energy along the Desaru coast, and to use this as an explanatory variable. Finally, the zeta-form bay analysis suggests that Desaru Day does not at present comply with Silvester's concept of stability - a situation with significant management implications.The third part of the thesis presents the results of the contrasting case study on Port Dickson on the west coast. The physical and cultural background of this area is described, and is followed by the results from the four types of data analysis felt to be most appropriate here. Both the sediment size statistics analysis and the statistical analysis of processes and environmental variables give relatively little indication of the controls of the coastal system compared with the much closer relationships found at Desaru. However, the beach profile analysis gives a good basis for distinguishing the ridge and runnel profiles from the non ridge and runnel zone. Reasons for this distinction are discussed. The analysis of offshore sea-bed bathymetric changes indicates an historical pattern of evolution, and also prompts consideration of its influence on the Port Dickson foreshore in both geomorphological and management terms. The final part of the thesis considers general conclusion and offers an overall comparison of the results from the two case-study areas. It also provides guidelines for future research. Some potentially fruitful implications for Malaysian coastal management and planning are proposed on the basis of the foregoing investigation.

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