Sedimentary coasts

Geoscience for central Vancouver Island communities

Vancouver Island's famed beaches, including those at Parksville and Qualicum Beach on the east coast and in Pacific Rim National Park on the west coast, occur where waves erode sand and gravel from cliffs of glacial deposits or from river-mouth deltas. During winter, many beaches shrink as storms move sand offshore. The sand is carried back to the beaches by smaller waves and currents in summer.