Eli5 why does wet sand stick together?

Question

Eli5 why does wet sand stick together?

In: Earth Science

Answer 1

Pretty much only because of water. 1) cohesion, 2) surface tension. Sand itself isn’t a very sticky substance (relative to clay and silt) because it is largely inert and doesn’t have many exhange sites (if at all) for other molecules/nutrients/whatever to bind