A Study on the Erosion and Sedimentation Traces According to the Sea Level Changes Since the Medieval Warm Period in the Hwaseong Coast

화성 연안의 중세온난기 이후 해수면 변동에 연동된 침식·퇴적 흔적 연구

In this paper, based on evidence of coastal sediment, we show that erosion and sedimentation environments are very sensitive to sea level changes during the Medieval Warm Period (MWP) and the Little Ice Age (LIA). We identified four sedimentary units(4.57-3.07m), which formed in the Dark Age Cool Period (DACP), MWP and LIA were classified based on the lithostratigraphy, grain size distribution, magnetic susceptibility and geochemistry of a drilling core taken from the west coast of Hwaseong City. The unconformity surfaces as boundaries of the units were also identified by the lithostratigraphy shown on the drilling core. We propoese that sedimentation was dominant in the area during the periods of sea level rise, whereas erosion prevailed during the periods of sea level fall. Particularly, extreme events, such as floods and typhoons are believed to have accelerated these processes, and we found the associated evidence in sediments of two units. This study provides an example of estimating the relative sea level variation using coastal sediments and may be useful for studying past sea level changes around the Korean Peninsula.