What is hard and soft engineering in geography?

Answer 1

The terms sea defense and coastal protection are used to mean, respectively, defense against flooding and erosion. The term coastal defence is the more traditional term, but coastal management has become more popular as the field has expanded to include techniques that allow erosion to claim land.

Hard engineering is generally defined as controlled disruption of natural processes by using man-made structures. It is sometimes considered to be the use of concrete breakwalls to limit the amount of coastal erosion on a being or a cliff-face where land is being absorbed by the sea or steel sheet piling to stabilize shorelines and achieve safety along the coastline to limit the amount of sand being transported by longshore drift.

Soft engineering is the use of ecological principles and practices to reduce erosion and achieve the stabilization and safety of shorelines and the area surrounding rivers, while enhancing habitat, improving aesthetics, and saving money. Soft engineering is achieved by using vegetation and other materials to soften the land-water interface, thereby improving ecological features without compromising the engineered integrity of the shoreline or river edges.

Answer 2

Soft-engineering is a method used for controlling flooding. The advantages of soft-engineering methods are that they require very little maintenance and work. For example afforestration and planning are very quick methods compared to hard-engineering methods. This means that money is not needed for any workers to do the job and money is saved and is spent on other needed things in the area. Another advantage of soft-engineering methods is that the environment and wildlife is not harmed in anyway and things are only done to try and help it. Things are used naturally which is seen as being ethical and people may like it. On the other hand there are many disadvantages of soft-engineering as a method for controlling flooding as methods may not be as effective as hard-engineering methods. For example afforestration may absorb some water and reduce the minimal affects of a flood, but if the discharge of the floor is very high then afforestration will have little effect, whereas a sea wall for example will completely prevent any affects from the flood as only the rock is being worn down and the settlement is left unaffected.

Answer 3

Simply, "hard" engineering is the phisical components and "soft" engineering is the soft ware. E.g, a hard engineer would make a mouse, and a soft enginner would make a game online

Answer 4

Soft engineering is more sustainable because it costs less