Beach-dune modelling in support of Building with Nature for an integrated spatial design of urbanized sandy shores

The long-term physical existence of sandy shores critically depends on a balanced sediment budget. From the principles of Building with Nature it follows that a sustainable protection of sandy shores should employ some form of shore nourishment. In the spatial design process of urbanized sandy shores, where multiple functions must be integrated,...

Wave transmission and drag coefficients through dense cylinder arrays: Implications for designing structures for mangrove restoration

Mangrove vegetation constitutes a natural coastal defence against waves and erosion. Despite their protective role, mangrove ecosystems have experienced continuous degradation over the last decades due to human causes. At retreating mangrove coastlines, bamboo structures are built to create new habitat for mangrove colonization. Existing...

Mapping mangrove opportunities with open access data: A case study for Bangladesh

Mangroves protect coastal areas against hazards like storms or cyclones by attenuating waves and currents, and by trapping floating debris during extreme events. Bangladesh is a very vulnerable country to floods and cyclones, and part of its coastal system is thus being upgraded to a higher safety standard. These upgrades include embankment...

Sustainable delta landscapes need smarter port city regions

Economic and spatial developments of port cities have large impacts on the quality of the natural environment, the safety of people living in the urbanized areas and the fresh water supply for drinking water and agriculture. Creating a proper balance among these different aspects, makes it necessary to provide new concepts and instruments at the...

The exploration of solution strategies for the mitigation of coastal erosion by applying the BwN design process: A case study at Long Bay, Jamaica

Coastline regression is a significant threat to many coastal zones. Being able to mitigate the erosion while simultaneously improving nature development is something that is increasingly strived for in coastal projects. This report utilizes the building with nature philosophy to explore integrated solutions for a coastal erosion problem in...

Coastal protection of the Bạc Liêu province by rehabilitation of the mangrove forest

In the southern part of Vietnam, where the lower Mekong Delta is located, coastal erosion problems occur. In the Bạc Liêu province, one of the twelve provinces in the Mekong Delta, the width of the mangrove belt between the sea dyke and the sea is reduced by 100 m in the last four years. By rehabilitation of the mangrove forest, the hinterland...

Nature-based flood protection: The efficiency of vegetated foreshores for reducing wave loads on coastal dikes

This paper analyses the effect of vegetation on wave damping under severe storm conditions, based on a combination of field measurements and numerical modelling. The field measurements of wave attenuation by vegetation were performed on two salt marshes with two representative but contrasting coastal wetland vegetation types: cordgrass ...