The coastal plain of belgium, joint product of natural processes and human activities

Abstract

The coastal plain is a flat low-lying area with hardly any expression of relief at the surface. Its subsurface, however, contains a rich archive of the depositional history that started about 10,000 years ago, and that represents the history of infill of a major pre-Holocene palaeovalley. The infill of the palaeovalley was controlled by several factors, among which relative sea level rise was initially the main driver. In the course of time, the balance between sediment supply and accommodation space took over the control of infill. Toward the end of the infill, humans played a prominent role in the further evolution of the plain, causing changes that ultimately determined its present-day characteristics. The complex interaction of regional and local processes is explained in the geological setting of the area. The development of De Moeren and the Zwin region, two protected areas that experienced a specific evolution, different from the general history of infill, illustrates the effect of local influences in controlling spatial and temporal patterns of sedimentation in response to variations in coastal processes.