Modeling the effects of hard structures on dune erosion and overwash

Many of the most densely populated areas are located near the coast. Climate change and population growth put more and more pressure on these coastal areas. As free space is becoming sparse, coastal disaster risk reduction plans need to be spatially efficient. In this thesis the sandy coast with hard structures, such as buildings or dune...

Impact Modelling of Hurricane Sandy on the Rockaways: Relating high-resolution storm characteristics to observed impact with use of Bayesian Belief Networks

Hurricane Sandy (2012), which made landfall in New Jersey on October 29th, made devastating impact on the East Coast of the USA and struck major parts of New York City, including the economic centre of Manhattan. The total damage (in the USA and Caribbean) is in excess of 100 billion US$ with estimates ranging between 78 and 97 billion US$ for...

Effectiveness of a multipurpose artificial underwater structure as a coral reef canopy: Hydrodynamic and ecological connectivity

The following research focuses on artificial underwater structures (a.k.a. artificial reefs) in a coral reef environment to mitigate the natural and anthropogenic pressures which reef systems are increasingly facing worldwide. The research question is stated as: “Establishing a method to determine if a multipurpose artificial underwater...

Modelling sediment transport and morphology during overwash and breaching events

Currently, morphodynamic models as XBeach show substantial overestimations of the erosion rates during breaching and overwash events at barrier islands. The presently used limitations on the Shields parameter and the sediment concentration do hinder erosion, but have undesirable side effects, e.g. the breaching process is suppressed. By...

Process-based modelling of the Santo André Lagoon: Understanding of the physical processes involved in the inlet closure

The Santo André Lagoon is one of many inlets and lagoons that can be found along the along the Atlantic coast of Portugal. These coastal systems have a large ecological value and are important for rich biodiversity. The Santo André Lagoon is part of a natural reserve that is officially under protection of the country. It has a rich flora and...