Sediment Management Alternatives for the Port of Gulfport, Mississippi

Davis, T. E., & McAnally, W. H. (2010). Sediment Management Alternatives for the Port of Gulfport, Mississippi. Mississippi State University: Civil and Environmental Engineering Department.

The objective of the project is to develop solutions to reduce sediment problems within the Port of Gulfport, MS and to introduce a working simulation model to reinforce the importance of throughput within the Port of Gulfport. Sediment deposition causes and solutions will be studied along a brief explanation of the hindrance of dredging to vessel throughput within the port. Ports along the Mississippi Gulf Coast experience large amounts of sediment deposition within their ports and ship channels. The primary tool for sediment removal is dredging, which can be very expensive and create downtimes within port operations. Research will study existing deposited material to determine its sources and suggest solutions for reduction of sediment deposition using structures, technologies and/or practices. Instruments used for such studies were clam shell dredges, Niskin tubes, and automatic water samplers to test bed sediment gradation, suspended point sediments and tidal variations in suspended sediments, respectively. Additionally, fluid mud data were retrieved from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Engineering Research and Development Center. This combination of data assisted in the development of solutions for the reduction or prevention of sediment deposition within the port. Further, research was performed to compare the estimated allowable throughput without dredging to throughput with dredging. This throughput estimation is shown in a simulated model.