The interface of 440,000 km long coastline in the world is subject to global change, with an increasing human pressure (land use, buildings, sand mining, dredging) and increasing population. Improving our knowledge on involved mechanisms and sediment transport processes, monitoring the evolution of sedimentary stocks and anticipating changes in littoral and coastal zones is essential for this purpose. The special issue of Water on “Sediment transport in coastal waters” gathers thirteen papers which introduce the current revolution in the scientific research related to coastal and littoral hydrosedimentary dynamics, and reflect the diversity of concerns on which research in coastal sediment transport is based, and current trends — topics and preferred methods — to address them.

This book treats the subject of sediment transport in the marine environment, covering transport of non-cohesive sediment by waves and current in- and outside the surf zone. It can be read independently, but a background in hydraulics and basic wave mechanics is required. It is intended for M.Sc. and Ph.D. students. The primary aim of the book is to describe the physical processes of sediment transport and how to represent them in mathematical models. It does not present a large number of different formulae for the sediment transport rates under various conditions. The book can be divided in two main parts; in the first, the relevant hydrodynamic theory is described; in the second, sediment transport and morphological development are treated. The hydrodynamic part contains a review of elementary theory for water waves, chapters on the turbulent wave boundary layer and the turbulent interaction between waves and currents, and finally, surf zone hydrodynamics and wave driven currents. The part on sediment transport introduces the basic concepts (critical bed shear stress, bed load, suspended load and sheet layer, near-bed concentration, effect of sloping bed); it treats suspended sediment in waves and current and in the surf zone, and current and wave-generated bed forms. Finally, the modelling of cross-shore and long-shore sediment transport is described together with the development, of coastal profiles and coastlines.

A practical guide to the latest techniques to measure sediments, seabed, water and transport mechanisms in estuaries and coastal waters. Covering a broad range of topics, enough background is included to explain how each technology functions. A review of recent fieldwork experiments demonstrates how modern methods apply in real-life scenarios.

This book is intended as a useful handbook for professionals and researchers in the areas of Physical Oceanography, Marine Geology, Coastal Geomorphology and Coastal Engineering and as a text for graduate students in these fields. With its emphasis on boundary layer flow and basic sediment transport modelling, it is meant to help fill the gap between general hydrodynamic texts and descriptive texts on marine and coastal sedimentary processes. The book commences with a review of coastal bottom boundary layer flows including the boundary layer interaction between waves and steady currents. The concept of eddy viscosity for these flows is discussed in depth because of its relation to sediment diffusivity. The quasi-steady processes of sediment transport over flat beds are discussed. Small scale coastal bedforms and the corresponding hydraulic roughness are described. The motion of suspended sand particles is studied in detail with emphasis on the possible suspension maintaining mechanisms in coastal flows. Sediment pickup functions are provided for unsteady flows. A new combined convection-diffusion model is provided for suspended sediment distributions. Different methods of sediment transport model building are presented together with some classical models.

Describes the physics of the coastal ocean, for advanced students, researchers, urban planners, and environmental engineers.

Fine Sediment in Open Water is mainly written for professional engineers working in estuaries and coastal systems. It provides the basis for a fundamental understanding of the physical, biological and chemical processes governing the transport and fate of fine sediment in open water and explains how this understanding can steer engineering studies with numerical models. This is a unique treatment of processes at a variety of spatial and temporal scales, from the micro-scale (colloid scale) to system-wide scales, and from intra-tidal time periods to decades.Beginning with the processes governing the transport and fate of fine sediment in shallow open water, the first eight chapters are dedicated to the hydrodynamic, soil mechanics and biological processes which determine fine sediment concentrations in the water column, in/on the bed and the exchange of sediment between bed and water column. The next two chapters treat the net fluxes of fine sediment as a function of asymmetries in forcing and sediment properties. These fundamental processes form the basis for the subsequent chapters on modeling in which the governing equations are presented, and tools are provided to aggregate and parameterize the various processes elaborated in the first eight chapters. Further, any numerical model study should be based on a conceptual model, as illustrated in the final five chapters, which provide examples of numerical modeling studies on the transport and fate of fine sediment in a coastal sea, an estuary, a tidal river, a lake, and around and within a harbor basin.Related Link(s)

Like ocean beaches, sheltered coastal areas experience land loss from erosion and sea level rise. In response, property owners often install hard structures such as bulkheads as a way to prevent further erosion, but these structures cause changes in the coastal environment that alter landscapes, reduce public access and recreational opportunities, diminish natural habitats, and harm species that depend on these habitats for shelter and food. Mitigating Shore Erosion Along Sheltered Coasts recommends coastal planning efforts and permitting policies to encourage landowners to use erosion control alternatives that help retain the natural features of coastal shorelines.