Environmentally Friendly Coastal Protection

Coast lines have been and still are the central lines of civilization around the world with still increasing pressure from both sides – the hinterland and the sea – with all its foreseeable and unforeseeable impacts by means of nature or mankind. While the response of nature to such impacts is flexible in the way that all morphological changes with all the consequences are tolerated as part of the system, humanity cannot tolerate short-term or long-term changes without being threatened in its physical and economical existence. The objectives of this Advanced Research Workshop (ARW) on Environmentally Friendly Coastal Structures were: - to contribute to the critical assessment of existing knowledge in the field of coastal and environmental protection; - to identify directions for future research in that area; - to promote close working relationships between scientists from different countries and with different professional experience. The latest trends in research on coastal and environmental protection were summarized and developed during the meeting. Seventeen papers are presented in this book, attempting to cover all related aspects as completely as possible – coast, engineering structures, water, sediments, ecosystems in their complicated interaction.

The shift from hard shore to soft shore protection has been an impetus to further our understanding of coastal processes and to develop effective, environmentally friendly, and low-cost defence strategies against the erosive sea action. This collection of application-oriented contributions on Soft Shore Protection represents a milestone for environmental coastal engineering science and technology. It covers, among other subjects, nourishing techniques and light structures that slow down or even eliminate erosion, as well as possibilities that coastal management authorities and specialists need to know. Audience: Scientists at engineering, earth sciences and oceanography faculties and institutions will find essential information on this new, expanding field. This volume resulting from the Soft Shore Protection Conference 2000 is directed to educators, students, design coastal engineers, contractors, and national and local coast managers around the world.

Utilizing the coastal problems of South Asia, including sea level rise, Towards Sustainable Coastal Development: Institutionalizing Integrated Coastal Zone Management and Coastal Climate Change Adaptation in South Asia investigates the role of law and regional regimes in facilitating linkages between integrated coastal zone management and coastal climate change adaptation to contribute to sustainable coastal development.

Living Shorelines: The Science and Management of Nature-based Coastal Protection compiles, synthesizes and interprets the current state of the knowledge on the science and practice of nature-based shoreline protection. This book will serve as a valuable reference to guide scientists, students, managers, planners, regulators, environmental and engineering consultants, and others engaged in the design and implementation of living shorelines. This volume provides a background and history of living shorelines, understandings on management, policy, and project designs, technical synthesis of the science related to living shorelines including insights from new studies, and the identification of research needs, lessons learned, and perspectives on future guidance. Makes recommendations on the correct usage of the term living shorelines Offers guidance for shoreline management in the future Includes lessons learned from the practice of shoreline restoration/conservation Synthesizes regional perspectives to identify strategies for the successful design and implementation of living shorelines Reviews specific design criteria for successful implementation of living shorelines Provides detailed discussions of social, regulatory, scientific and technical considerations to justify and design living shoreline projects International perspectives are presented from leading researchers and managers in the East, West and Gulf coasts of the United States, Europe, Canada, and Australia that are working on natural approaches to shoreline management. The broad geographic scope and interdisciplinary nature of contributing authors will help to facilitate dialogue and transfer knowledge among different disciplines and across different regions. This book provides coastal communities with the scientific foundation and practical guidance necessary to implement effective shoreline management that enhances ecosystem services and coastal resilience now and into the future.

Biliana Cicin-Sain and Robert W. Knecht are co-directors of the Center for the Study of Marine Policy at the University of Delaware in Newark, Delaware and co-authors of The Future of U.S. Ocean Policy (Island Press, 1998).