The Relation between Sandy Shore Distribution and Basic Rock in the East Coast of the Korean Peninsula

한반도 동해안의 모래해안 발달과 암석 분포 사이의 상관성

The distribution and size of sandy beaches along eastern Korea has a close relationship with the presence of granite rocks. In general, elongated and wide beaches with abundant sands are likely to develop along the coasts where granitic basic rocks comprise the dominant geology or where a large amount of sands are supplied by streams from inland granitic rocks. Small sandy beaches, in contrast, appear in non-granitic rocks (i.e., under sedimentary and/or metamorphic geology). Hence, large beaches are observed continuously along the shore of Gangwon-do, of which coasts consist predominantly of granitic geology. Such continuity declines from Samcheok city to Pohang city. The rock of Gyeonbuk-do is commonly known as sedimentary, deposited between the late Triassic and the early Tertiary Periods. Because few sands are supplied from the upstream areas, sandy beaches unlikely develop along the coasts of the province, only showing a sporadic, discontinuous distribution under Bulguksa granite, granitic gneiss, and some volcanic rocks. Erosion was rarely observed in the beaches where granitic rocks are distributed, whereas merely five beaches seemed to have undergone some level of erosion in non-granitic regions. This is presumably because a larger amount of sands than that which had been eroded away was replenished in areas under granitic geology, while under non-granitic geology having a deficit in sands, no large sandy beaches had formed at first.