GCSE Geography: Rivers and Coasts Revision Guide

River processes

Rivers shape the land through three processes: erosion (wearing away material via hydraulic action, abrasion, attrition and solution), transportation (carrying material by traction, saltation, suspension and solution), and deposition (dropping material when the river loses energy).

River landforms

In the upper course, erosion dominates, forming V-shaped valleys, interlocking spurs and waterfalls (where a band of hard rock sits over softer rock, undercutting it to form a plunge pool and gorge). In the middle and lower course, the river winds into meanders, which can eventually be cut off to form ox-bow lakes, while floodplains and levees form from repeated deposition during floods.

Coastal processes

Waves both erode and deposit material. Erosion happens through the same four processes as rivers, while longshore drift moves sediment along a coastline in a zig-zag pattern, driven by the prevailing wind direction.

Coastal landforms

Erosion creates headlands and bays (where hard and soft rock erode at different rates), and features like caves, arches, stacks and stumps as headlands are worn back over time. Deposition creates beaches, spits and bars.

Managing rivers and coasts

Hard engineering uses built structures — sea walls, gabions and dams — to control erosion or flooding directly. Soft engineering works with natural processes instead, such as beach nourishment or managed retreat, and is often cheaper and more sustainable long term.

Common mistakes

• Mixing up erosion processes — learn hydraulic action, abrasion, attrition and solution as a set.
• Describing a landform without explaining the process that formed it — exam questions usually ask for both.
• Confusing hard and soft engineering examples.