Hydrodynamic Model Tests for Seaweed as a Source of Energy Reduction during Extreme Events

Abstract

One fifth of the world’s population and critical infrastructures are close to the coast and regions of high-risk sea level rise elevation. The last decades have been characterized by increasing extreme events, including storm surges, flooding, coastal erosion, enhanced coastal vulnerability with associated livelihood, and economic losses. Nature-based engineering solutions are being adopted as sustainable solutions for helping existing technologies live their design life and providing climate change adaptation and resilience for coastal and riverine communities. This paper involves the investigation of nature-based eco-hydraulic soft coastal engineering to cultivate seaweed for coastal protection. In this context, the present study involves an advanced risk evaluation performed by conducting an extreme bore interaction with seaweed as a soft engineering coastal protection measure. The load reduction on the inland structure during extreme flooding conditions, incorporating seaweed, is addressed. The present study indicates that the load on inland structures can be reduced by as much as 14% in extreme flooding conditions in the presence of seaweed with two rows of seaweed, indicating the usage of seaweed as a part of coastal protection over existing site protection infrastructure for improved coastal mitigation.

Review of Nature-Based Echo-Hydraulic Aqua-Forest Technology for Coastal Resilience and Sea Level Rise Climate-Induced Adaptation

“…For free and floating structure tests, Froude's law is the most suitable scaling law. [112]. Although seaweed is lightweight in water due to its natural buoyancy, it plays a significant role in driving the system's dynamics through its movement.…”

“…Therefore, there is a need to develop a system for climate change adaptation that will provide solutions to climate-induced risk. Growing seaweed to dampen incoming waves to the coast is one way to address and mitigate this risk [112].…”

“…This review focuses on technology to plant seaweed as a nature-based solution that leverages efforts, avoids redundancy, and moves science and engineering rapidly forward, improving technology while protecting the natural ecosystem. A model test experiment followed the review, and the finding was published in [112]. Seaweed and seagrass green eco-engineering eco-technology systems will be designed for future deployment and tested in selected troubled coasts to assess mitigation that a natural-base and ecological approach can provide coastal protection and ensure environmental conservation.…”

“…This method offers more farming areas, which helps to meet the growing need for seaweed and seagrass as a natural resource. Wave impact damping by seaweed types and farming structures in controlled laboratory experiments was conducted [112].…”