This book is written for graduate students, researchers, and practitioners in the fields of coastal engineering, nearshore oceanography, and marine geology. Although the treatment in many chapters is rather mathematical, it is hoped that our message does not get swamped by the delivery.

The book, which deals primarily with sandy coastlines, is divided into four parts. The first, Introduction to Coastal Processes, provides an overview of the problems of coastal engineering based on examples and a geological perspective of the field. Part 2, Hydrodynamics of the Coastal Zone, reviews storm surges, water waves, and low-frequency motions within the nearshore and surf zone. The third part, Coastal Response, discusses the equilibrium beach profile and sediment transport. Finally, the last section, Shoreline Modification and Analysis, covers aspects of erosion mitigation such as beach nourishment and coastal armoring, tidal inlets, and shoreline management.

We have attempted to include much of the important work in the field, but, given a book with such a broad scope, we have been forced to omit (or overlook) a considerable amount of the literature. An attempt has been made to reference those contributions that clarified the physics of the processes or provided a model for engineering applications. Nevertheless, the book is biased toward our own experiences, which means that much of our work and many U.S. examples are presented. To our colleagues and friends whose work we have used, thanks, and to those whom we have egregiously omitted, our apologies.