
Chalk cliffs, Sussex

The cliffs shown below are eroded by wave action at the cliff foot and, every few years, more of the cliffs above collapse – usually after heavy rain.

Chalk is very porous, so water drains down quickly from the surface into cracks and cavities in the rock beneath. This is why chalk landscapes are rather dry and bare. Chalk ground-water provides much of the tap water for east and south-east England.
Seven Sisters, Sussex

