Author(s): Honghai Li, Tanya M. Deck, Tahirih C. Lackey, Hans R. Moritz, Katharine Groth, Trapier Puckette, Jon Marsh
Linked Author(s): Honghai Li
Keywords: Sediment tracer, sediment transport, coastal hydrodynamic modeling, waves, coastal inlet.
Abstract: A numerical hydrodynamic, wave, and sediment transport model, the Coastal Modeling System (CMS), was applied to investigate the transport of dredged material placed in the nearshore and offshore areas of an ocean dredged material disposal site (ODMDS) adjacent to the Coos Bay inlet, Oregon. Historical oceanic and atmospheric data in the Coos Bay and the inlet system were assembled, and a field program was carried out to collect waves and hydrodynamic data and to implement a sediment tracer study. The data were used to set up the numerical model and to calibrate and validate model calculations. By evaluating local sediment transport and morphological change and simulating the process of sediment tracer release and movement, the pathways of sediment tracer were determined under combined influence of wave, current, and wind conditions within and around the immediate vicinity of the Coos Bay ODMDS. The calculated results and the measured sediment tracer data indicate that the dredged material placed in the nearshore area of ODMDS tends to backfill the navigation channel under normal conditions. Sediment pathways are primarily controlled by tidal current inside the Coos Bay and at the inlet entrance, and responding to wave and storm conditions in the open coastal area
Year: 2017