Which term indicates sediments derived from the erosion of land and deposited on the continental shelf?

• A. Neritic Sediment
• B. Mineral
• C. Cosmogenous Sediment
• D. Evaporite

Answer: (A)

The concept being tested is where sediments originate and where they settle. Sediments that come from erosion of land are lithogenous or terrigenous, and when that land-derived material is deposited in shallow coastal waters over the continental shelf, it’s described as neritic sediment. This name reflects both the land origin and the nearshore, shallow-water setting where these materials accumulate.

Cosmogenous sediments come from extraterrestrial dust and meteorites, not from terrestrial erosion. Evaporites form from minerals precipitating as seawater evaporates in restricted basins, not from land-derived debris. A generic term like mineral doesn’t specify the source or deposition environment. So the term that best fits “sediments derived from the erosion of land and deposited on the continental shelf” is neritic sediment.