José Santos López-Gutiérrez

Review of coastal Land Reclamation situation in the World

ABSTRACT Martín-Antón, M.; Negro, V.; del Campo, J.M., López-Gutiérrez, J.S., and Esteban M.D., 2016. Review of coastal Land Reclamation situation in the World. In: Vila-Concejo, A.; Bruce, E.; Kennedy, D.M., and McCarroll, R.J. (eds.), Proceedings of the 14th International Coastal Symposium (Sydney, Australia). Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue, No. 75, pp. 667–671. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. Land reclamation from the sea has been occurring since ancient times, especially in harbors. The vast majority of the worlds docks now occupy spaces that were once water and this heavily influences the coastal landscape. Japan has been one of the countrys most needing to expand into the sea due to its topography and land requirements for agriculture, urbanization and, especially, industries and port facilities. Ninety per cent of Tokyo Bays coastline is reclaimed land, which is almost 250 km2 of new land. In the 21st century, this disproportionate conquest of the sea has shifted to other countries. In the Persian Gulf, the coast has been indiscriminately occupied with artificial island projects for residential purposes. Some of them are finding some difficulties, such as “The Palms” and “The World” in Dubai, with a loss of sand, which is effect of currents and waves. In China, due to economic expansion and export needs, industrial areas are spreading on the coast. Caofeidian (Bohai Bay) is the largest landfill island in the world with 150 km2, more than twice the sum of Dubai islands area. This disproportion of public works in Asia contrasts with the rest of the world. For example, the Bay of Algeciras (Spain-UK) is the largest container traffic Port in the Mediterranean with 2.5 km2 of reclaimed land, 100 times less than Tokyo Bay. A further problem associated with this practice is liquefaction, caused mainly by earthquakes, leading to ground subsidence in buildings, such as in Niigata (1964) or in San Francisco (1989), all on reclaimed land. This research paper aims to study land reclamation in the World with current statistics, geotechnical problems, the impact on the coastal landscape and future developments.

Software for Predicting Hydrodynamic Pressures on Offshore Pile Foundations: The Next Step in Ocean Energy Development

ABSTRACT Escobar, A.; Negro, V.; Lopez-Gutierrez, J.S., and Esteban, M.D., 2016. Software for predicting hydrodynamic pressures on offshore pile foundations: The next step in ocean energy development. In: Vila-Concejo, A.; Bruce, E.; Kennedy, D.M., and McCarroll, R.J. (eds.), Proceedings of the 14th International Coastal Symposium (Sydney, Australia). Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue, No. 75, pp. 841–845. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. The purpose of this study is to carry out a thorough, critical analysis of the Morison equation as far as calculating wave action on large diameter piles like those used nowadays in offshore wind farms is concerned. The aim is to observe whether models currently used to estimate wave forces on piles are valid for large diameter piles apart from observing what the main forces in play in scouring are. This equation enables wave produced forces on a cylinder supported on the sea bed to be calculated. The study includes observations on the calculation models sensitivity as to a variation in the cylinders diameter, on the one hand and, on the other, as to temperature and salinity variation. With this in mind, specific software has been developed to simulate equations in fluid mechanics applied to solve the wave–structure interaction problem in the separation, inertial and diffraction range. This software will enable an iterative calculation to be made for finding out the shape of the pressure wave caused when a wave passes over and will show the results for different pile diameters and water temperature.

Meteocean Influence on Inland and Coastal Floods in the East of Spain

ABSTRACT Diez, J.J.; Esteban, M.D.; López-Gutiérrez, J.S., and Negro, V., 2013. Meteocean influence on inland and coastal floods in the east of Spain. The Santa Irene flood, at the end of October 1982, is one of the most dramatically and widely reported flood events in Spain. Its renown is mainly attributable to the collapse of the Tous dam, but its main message is to be the paradigm of the incidence of the maritime/littoral weather and its temporal sea-level rise on the coastal plains inland floods. The Santa Irene flood was attributable to a meteorological phenomenon known as gota fría (cold drop), a relatively frequent and intense rainy phenomenon on the Iberian Peninsula, particularly on the Spanish E to SE inlands and coasts. There are some circumstances that can easily come together to unleash the cold drop there: cold and dry polar air masses coming onto the whole Iberian Peninsula and the north of Africa, high sea-water temperatures, and low atmospheric pressure (cyclone) areas in the western Mediterranean basin; these circumstances are quite common during the autumn and, as it happens, in other places around the world (E/SE Africa). Their occurrence, however, shows a great space-temporal variability (in a similar way to hurricanes on Caribbean and western North Atlantic areas or also in a similar way to typhoons). In fact, all of these are equivalent, although different, phenomena, able to have a different magnitude each time. This paper describes the results of a detailed analysis and reflection about this cold drop phenomenon as a whole, on the generation of its rains, and on the different natures and consequences of its flood. This paper also explains the ways in which the nearby maritime weather and the consequential sea level govern floods on different zones of any hydrographical basin. The Santa Irene case can be considered as a paradigm to explain the influence of nearby maritime climatic conditions on flooding phenomena not only in coastal but also in upward inland areas.

New Coastal Regulation in Spain. A roadmap to a better approach to coastal environment

ABSTRACT López-Gutiérrez, J.S.; Negro, V., and Esteban, M.D., 2016. New Coastal Regulation in Spain. A roadmap to a better approach to coastal environment. In: Vila-Concejo, A.; Bruce, E.; Kennedy, D.M., and McCarroll, R.J. (eds.), Proceedings of the 14th International Coastal Symposium (Sydney, Australia). Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue, No. 75, pp. 662–666. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. The decision to draw a fixed line dividing land into two different types of property – public domain and privately owned land – in a changeable environment is a potentially major source of conflict in Spain. This conflict is caused by adapting this fixed line to the movements of the shoreline. Obviously, then, the limit has to move its position from time to time. The current Spanish Coastal Law was published in 2013. As written, it cannot be considered a single document because it has to be read together with the previous 1988 Coastal Law document in order to gain a complete view of the current Spanish Coastal Law. The new Coastal Regulation was published in 2014. The paper shows and analyzes changes in the 2013 Law and the 2014 Regulation in comparison with the previous 1988 Coastal Law and the 1989 Regulation. Some of the changes set forth in the paper are: a more accurate definition of the position of the Public Domain limit; a new definition of the severe regression concept; a new classification of the uses of beaches depending on the characteristics of the area; consideration of the climate change effects; possibility of transferring, inter vivos and causa mortis, of properties located in the public domain under government concession, etc. All these lead drive to major improvements in coastal management in Spain. In addition, this paper includes some proposals for further improvements.