hapua

Noun

hapua (plural hapua)

1. a river-mouth lagoon, chiefly in New Zealand, formed at the interface between a braided river and a mixed sand and gravel beach deposited and extended by longshore drift.
   • Given the spectrum of hapua that exist in Canterbury more studies are needed on the effects of river flow changes on the hapua represented in Table CS5.1. The next section examines the scientific basis for determining and managing the impacts of development on hapua environments within the current...2009, Allan Williams, Anton Micallef, Beach Management: Principles and Practice, Earthscan, →ISBN, page 282
   • Hapua take the form of generally coast-parallel bodies of predominantly fresh water impounded by a long, narrow spit formed of coarse sediments by longshore drift offsetting at a river mouth.2000 April, R. M. Kirk, G. A. Lauder, “Two types of coastal lagoon, South Island, New Zealand” (chapter 3), in Significant coastal lagoon systems in the South Island, New Zealand: Coastal processes...