Publications:Newsletters/Apr2013
__NOTITLE__ CIRP April 2013 eNewsletter
Issue 32, April 2013
In this Newsletter:
Egmont Key, FL Field Data Campaign
From 14-18 March, as part of a collaborative initiative across three navigation research programs, CHL, EL, and researchers from the University of South Florida conducted a field study on the turbidity, dispersion, and sedimentologic characteristics of dredge and nearshore placement plumes at the mouth of Tampa Bay, FL. The study’s objective was to evaluate the loss of fine sediments from the source within the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) to the sink, a nearshore placement area offshore of Egmont Key, and to determine the temporal and spatial fingerprint of dredging and placement plumes with respect to cultural and ecological resources such as submerged aquatic vegetation. Study findings will assist the Corps’ Jacksonville District in future permitting efforts utilizing the Corps’ new hopper dredge, the Murden, for nearshore placement of sediments with higher concentrations of fine material. This study was supported by the Coastal Inlets Research (CIRP), Dredging Operations and Environmental Research (DOER), and Regional Sediment Management (RSM) programs. Study technical leads are Tanya Beck, Coraggio Maglio, and Dr. Joseph Gailani. POC: Tanya Beck, tanya.m.beck@usace.army.mil
The annual Navigation Research Area Review Group (RARG) meeting was held at Mobile District offices 26-28 Mar. This year RARG attendance was very limited, but the CIRP presentation can be downloaded from the CIRP website under "Tech Transfer -> Meetings -> RARG2013." The RARG annually reviews research efforts and prioritizes statements of need (SoNs) submitted by non-ERDC USACE personnel through the Navigation Gateway (http://operations.usace.army.mil/navigation.cfm). Navigation RD&T program managers presented their work to date in an overview of the past year and identified work planned for this year and next. Forty-three SoNs submitted in the past year were presented and discussed, and previously unfunded SoNs were reviewed. The RARG was shown four technology demonstrations that Mobile District presented using ERDC products from the Navigation RD&T portfolio. At the end of the two-day meeting, the RARG ranked the cumulative list of SoNs to identify priorities for new work to begin in FY14 (rankings to be announced). POC: Julie Rosati, Julie.D.Rosati@usace.army.mil
FY13 Webinar #2: Nearshore Placement, 29 November 2012
The CIRP and RSM Programs hosted the first webinar in a series that are specific to nearshore placement and are intended to compliment the RSM bi-monthly meetings. The goals of these meetings are to bring awareness to the topic, connect the tools and information from R&D to the field, and provide a venue for general discussion. Nearshore Berms, an active and migratory version of a nearshore placement within the coastal environment, was the focus of the discussion. Several potential webinar topics were identified, including the efficacy and methodology of choosing a depth limit for nearshore berm placements. If you have a future topic on nearshore placements you would like to address in a webinar, please contact Tanya Beck. http://rsm.usace.army.mil/Nearshore/webinar.html
POC: Tanya Beck, Tanya.m.beck@usace.army.mil
Upcoming FY13 Webinar #3: Channel Portfolio Tool (CPT) and Coastal Structure Asset Management and Ranking Tool (CSMART)
On March 6th-7th, Dr. Mitchell will lead two separate webinars covering CPT and the Coastal Structures Management, Analysis, and Ranking Tool (CSMART: https://itlgis01.usace.army.mil/CPT/Silverlight/CSMART), respectively. The March webinars will begin at 1400 EST and will each run 90 minutes to provide time for background descriptions of each tool as well as demonstrations of capabilities and planned FY13 developments. CPT provides access to detailed Waterborne Commerce records for Corps navigation projects, and allows channels to be compared objectively in terms of tonnage totals, $-value of cargo, and drafts of transiting vessels. CSMART is (for now) focused specifically on coastal navigation structures such as jetties and breakwaters, and it provides a way to compare structures in terms of quantitative metrics such as commercial tonnage supported, commercial fish landings, and cruise and ferry passengers passing nearby. Both CPT and CSMART are CIRP-developed products that are increasingly being used by Corps navigation managers to support annual O&M budget formulations, to respond to data calls, and to help inform discussions with decision makers and project stakeholders.
POC: Ned Mitchell, Kenneth.n.mitchell@usace.army.mil
14th Annual CIRP Workshop CANCELED
The workshop planned for February 11-13 2013 at SAJ has been canceled because we haven't received approval. Stay tuned; we'll try to have a workshop in FY13 or several webinars if an in-person workshop is not possible.
POC: Julie Rosati, Julie.D.Rosati@usace.army.mil
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