BEACH NOURISHMENT AND PARTICLE-SIZE EFFECTS

Predictive techniques for the behaviour of beach fill are reviewed in the light of natural nearshore dynamics. It is concluded that the most reliable prediction of beachfill behaviour is obtained when using a predictor which takes account of the textural properties of the native and borrow materials, the fill geometry and the incident wave climate. Depending on the manner in which the fill is placed, the losses from such a fill could for a too fine borrow material be less than would commonly be predicted when only textural properties are taken into account. Most references in the literature give inadequate data to allow the complication of a common inventory of beachfill behaviour. The establishment of an international data bank to overcome this problem will be a great aid to beachfill designers.