Sediment Transport and Suspension Analysis to Support Development Planning for Port Pota, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia

Abstract

A port is one of the places that supports transportation and the country's economy. It functions as the center of the community's economy, used for the purposes of the entry and exit of goods and human activities in it. To be in accordance with its function, a port must have complete facilities. One of the ports that does not meet the criteria mentioned above is the Port of Pota. The port of Pota has not yet operated; one of the reasons is that it does not yet have a stipulation for shipping lanes. The process of making shipping lanes involves dredging in order to get the appropriate depth; it is very important to conduct an investigation of the suspension material. Therefore, research on sediment transport is the basis for the development of port development and aims to be able to determine the hydro-oceanographic conditions in the waters of Pota Harbor. Based on the results of sample testing, it shows that the highest sediment content is at low tide, reaching 0.0087 g/L and the lowest is at high tide, reaching 0.0057 g/L. The simulation results of sediment levels for 24 days show that there is an increase in concentration at Pota Harbor of 0.94 kg/m3. The waters of the Port of Pota have a dominant current direction that tends to be parallel to the shoreline, or it can be said that the currents that occur in these waters are tidal currents. There is a stirring of sediment on the shore, which is then transported by currents and settles as the current velocity decreases due to shallower depths.