Morocco’s Atlantic coast: Exploring and discovering sites at high risk of marine erosion

Mohammed V University, Faculty of Sciences, Department of Geology, Ibn-Batouta Avenue, P.O. Box 1014, Rabat-Agdal, Morocco

^* Corresponding author: elmiloudiya_naji@um5.ac.ma

Abstract

Morocco's Atlantic coastline stretches from Tangier to Lagouira over a distance of around 3,000 km. It displays considerable geomorphological diversity depending on the structural domains, the nature and age of the terrain adjacent to the coastal profile, and even the degree of human covetousness and activity. In addition to a wealth of climato-eustatic records, coastal sedimentary dynamics, and prehistoric seismicity, there is evidence of an alarming retreat of the shoreline at sites such as Larache, Rabat, Safi, and Agadir. A project to research and map vulnerable sites with a view to forecasting risks in the field of coastal zone development is needed to avoid the dangers of marine aggression, which is likely to be amplified by extreme climate change and anthropogenic action in the context of increasingly strong littoralization.