Nearshore nourishment is a common coastal flood risk management technique that can be constructed beneficially by using dredged sediment from navigation channels. A nearshore nourishment project was completed during the summer of 2021 in Harvey Cedars, NJ, USA, with 67,500 m³ of dredged sediment from Barnegat Inlet placed along approximately 450 m of beach in a depth of 3–4 m. In situ instruments were installed to monitor hydrodynamic conditions before and after dredged material placement, and nine topographic and bathymetric surveys were conducted to monitor nearshore morphological response to the nourishment. Shoreline location was extracted from satellite imagery using CoastSat software to compare historical trends to the shoreline response after construction. Seven months after construction, 40% of the nearshore nourishment was transported from the initial footprint and the centroid of the nourishment migrated towards shore and alongshore (north). The sheltering capacity of the nearshore berm appears to have captured an additional 58% of the placed volume from the longshore transport system and the beach width onshore of the placement increased by 10.9 m. Measured data, satellite imagery analysis, and rapid predictions all indicate that the nearshore nourishment at Harvey Cedars had a positive impact on the adjacent beach.

Nearshore nourishments are constructed for shoreline protection from waves, to provide sediment nourishment to the beach profile, and to beneficially use dredged sediment from navigation channel maintenance. However, it is poorly understood how placement morphology and depth influence nearshore processes operated on wave-dominated coasts. This study investigates the wave fields, sediment transport, and morphological response to three common nearshore nourishment shapes, nearshore berm (elongated bar), undulated nearshore berm, and small discrete mounds, with numerical experiments utilizing the Coastal Modeling System. The nourishments are placed in depths between 3 m and 7 m with a volume of approximately 100,000 m³ and between 400 m and 1000 m in alongshore length. Numerical experiments are carried out in three distinct coastal settings with representative wave climates and geomorphology. Simulation results indicate that shallower, more continuous berms attenuate the most wave energy, while deeper, more diffuse placements retain more sediment. Results from this study improve the understanding of nearshore nourishment shapes and can support decision makers identifying the most appropriate construction technique for future nearshore nourishment projects.

Increasing societal pressures (e.g., population growth and urbanization) are driving land use change practices in coastal areas that could potentially alter the hydrodynamics and sediment transport patterns near coastal inlets in ways that might exacerbate existing shoaling conditions. To investigate the potential impact of coastal development, a numerical model is used to predict the long-term evolution of an idealized lagoonal-type barrier island inlet under five different morphological conditions that transitioned from net sediment import to net sediment export. The simulations were designed to address the potential effect of inter-tidal placement and land reclamation on sediment transport and the resulting deposition/erosion patterns. Estuaries that were deeper and devoid of extensive tidal flats tended to promote sediment import and had a greater propensity to exacerbate channel shoaling. Simulations that were characteristic of inter-tidal placement showed net export, yet the likelihood of channel shoaling was increased because some of the material eroded from the tidal flats was deposited in the deeper channels as opposed to being carried out the inlet throat. Alternatively, it was found that regions in which the intertidal area was restricted to elevations higher in the tidal frame, which also showed a net export, produced greater sediment loss in the inter-tidal zone that tended to bypass the deeper sections, reducing the likelihood of channel shoaling.