Birling Gap
Birling Gap is a hamlet on the coast of southern England.
General
Birling Gap is part of the East Dean and Friston parishes in the Wealden District in East Sussex . It lies between the Seven Sisters to the west and the highest chalk cliff Beachy Head to the east and is now part of the National Trust . Due to the progressive erosion of the chalk coast by the sea, some fishermen's houses ( cottages ), which were built in the late 19th century, have disappeared over time. The rest are partly abandoned and uninhabitable.
Metal stairs lead down the demolition to the pebble beach and the limestone cliffs of the Seven Sisters . According to experts, Birling Gap is most likely to fall victim to inexorable erosion, and the remaining houses will disappear into the sea in the next few decades. The hope of the few remaining residents for state aid to save their homes seems in vain. Both the government and the National Trust oppose action of any kind on the grounds that nature should be allowed to run its own course.
The situation is exacerbated by the rising lake water level combined with global climate changes. Supporters of aid measures argue that the coast around Birling Gap is the longest natural limestone reef in Europe and an example of the interaction between land and sea and their inhabitants and must be preserved.
geography
The main type of rock along the coast around Birling Gap is limestone . But there are also other types of rock, such as flint and loess . Parts of the coast are nature reserves. The narrow beach between the sea and the cliff consists mainly of gravel with occasional sandy spots. The chalk cliffs reach a height of up to 162 meters. They are the tallest chalk cliffs in Great Britain.
In various places remains of excavations can be seen, which suggest settlements from the Iron Age . Much of it has already been lost through erosion.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Crumbling cliffs highlight coastal crisis BBC News, July 14, 2000, accessed September 19, 2016
Coordinates: 50 ° 45 ' N , 0 ° 12' E