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13 pp

BEACH AND DUNE REINFORCEMENT WITH

GEOTEXTILE ENCAPSULATED-SAND SYSTEMS.
THE PORTUGUESE EXPERIENCE

LUCIANA DAS NEVES1, MARIA DE LURDES LOPES2,

FERNANDO VELOSO-GOMES3
1. Departamento de Engenharia Civil, Faculdade de Engenharia, Universidade do Porto,
Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal. lpneves@fe.up.pt
2. Departamento de Engenharia Civil, Faculdade de Engenharia, Universidade do Porto,
Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal. lcosta@fe.up.pt
3. Departamento de Engenharia Civil, Faculdade de Engenharia, Universidade do Porto,
Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal. vgomes@fe.up.pt

Abstract: Geotextile encapsulated-sand systems can provide efficient protection

in eroding shorelines of invaluable landscape, and low to medium risk management.
Over the last decade in Portugal, due to the perception that hard coastal interventions
have functional limitations and generate negative impacts, new approaches are
receiving increased attention from both, government agencies and stakeholders. The
Portuguese experience with geosystems are summarised in the paper, along with the
results from an ongoing RTD project that aims to develop a new technology of
coastal protection incorporating geotextile encapsulated-sand systems, more
suitable for applications under severe hydrodynamic conditions, notably similar to
those occurring along the northwest Portuguese Atlantic coast.

Introduction

Eroding shorelines are, around the world, shaping and modifying the coastal
landscape. Most of these landscape transformations are natural responses to
various physical processes, either at a time scale of days (e.g., between tides) or
of years (e.g., climate change drivers); however, the actual human development
along the coast is very often incompatible with the natural system dynamics. Such
development is an end result of a lack of sustainable spatial planning (e.g., by
allowing urbanisation and infrastructures too close to the sea), in turn converting
the natural phenomena of erosion into a problem with increasing consequences,
and ultimately leading to requirements for coastal defence.

The coastal engineering and management practice focus of attention is thus

primarily on the maintenance of the safety of people and assets at an adequate
level of protection, ensuring a low level of exposure to potentially hazardous
damage to structures, as well as to economic activities. Yet protection is
virtually at the same level of importance as the preservation of the natural
dynamics of coastal processes to the extent that it secures the space necessary
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for survival (i.e., the necessary space so that people living near the coast take
advantage of its great abundance without suffering from enhanced exposure to
erosion and/or floods); as even the most extensive and massive coastal defence
scheme is not able to control the sea in the long-term under certain severe
hydrodynamic conditions and, in such conditions, to protect the hinterland areas
(e.g., low-lying areas).

In Portugal, the predominance in investment priorities has been toward the former
aspect, maintaining the safety of people and assets at an adequate level of
protection, and less toward the latter (das Neves, 2011). However, in spite of such
investment, the basic conflict (i.e., space scarcity) remains. This does not mean
that those investments (e.g., in building groynes and seawalls) were not
indispensable in several cases, quite on the contrary, but rather that they have not
always had the anticipated morphodynamic impact. To take an example, it is
common for beaches located further downdrift coastal protected areas to suffer
from increased erosion due to sediment supply shortage. What is more, in various
locations, coastal structures did not hamper human development along areas at
risk, but have had quite the opposite effect while being illusive with respect to the
actual coastal erosion and/or flooding vulnerability.

Despite the prevalence (and very often the inevitability) of such remedy measures,
change in coastal practice is on the way as neither is reasonable to expect causes
for sediment supply shortage to fade away, nor to expect the trend of continuous
population growth in the littoral (i.e., the actual volume of residential
construction, as well as economic activities) to halt. Issues such as the anticipated
impact of structures on coastal processes are becoming more and more decisive
in coastal engineering and management.

In such a context, the use of materials like geotextile encapsulated-sand systems

are regaining interest with a couple of new projects currently ongoing. The main
advantages to those over the use of more traditional materials are that they are
filled with material readily available in the local, can be buried into the sand and
can be easily decommissioned if necessary.

Case Studies in Portugal

Portuguese experience with the application of geosynthetics in coastal

engineering was limited to their application as filters (e.g., in harbour structures),
and to some small emergency works and pilot prototype experiences, however
since 2014 the number of applications increased considerably with two additional
works accomplished, Molêdo do Minho and São Bartolomeu do Mar, and other
two, in a sand spit and in a dune system at Ofir, on track to start spring/summer
2015. Some of these applications are summarised in the following sections.
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Molêdo do Minho

Molêdo do Minho beach is located in Caminha, north of Portugal, near the river
mouth of the Minho River, which is at the border with Spain. It is a sandy beach
with a few rock outcrops. Although the beach is partially protected from waves
coming from the northeast by the presence of the Ínsua Island, it is still heavily
exposed to the high energetic wave conditions of the Atlantic Ocean.

After the winter of 2010/2011 the beach was severely eroded, which called for an
intervention, as the chances of a natural recovery of the beach and dune were
adjudged as quite low, because of the present shortage of sediment supply to the
beach. However, because any structure was foreseen in the coastal zone
management plan and because of the invaluable landscape, it was requested the
required intervention to be as natural as possible and choice has been made in
favour of a beach and dune reinforcement with geotextile encapsulated-sand
systems.

Over a distance of 330m length, divided into 11 elements, sand-filled geosystems

(app. 500m3 of sediment-fill per element) are used for dune reinforcement
(Geosin, 2015). Such intervention was completed during the summer of 2014,
most specifically during the month of August 2014.

São Bartolomeu do Mar

The intervention in São Bartolomeu do Mar, Esposende – also along the

Portuguese northwest coast, consisted in the demolition of a number of houses at
risk, and the refurbish of the urban space. This intervention, carried out in the
summer of 2014, incorporated sand-filled geosystems.

Pine Cliffs

In Algarve, south of Portugal, the foundation of a beach facility was protected

against wave attack and erosion by placing three sand-filled geotextile elements,
one of 40m and two others of 10m length. The year of construction was 2011.

Leirosa Beach

The installation of a pipeline in 1995 at Leirosa beach, municipality of Figueira

da Foz forced the cut down of a dune system and have resulted in the progressive
exposure of the dune system to wave attack, further enhanced by the weakening
of nourishment from the updrift sediment sources.
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Since 2000 operations of dune construction – beach sand pilling up to the dune
and planting of dune vegetation – were carried out on a regular basis. These
operations have had limited success.

In February 2005, an experimental project with geotextiles has been installed over
a stretch of approximately 120m. However, this structure has not entirely
performed according to expectations although it has been able to maintain the
dune alignment. During the first years, the structure deflated in several places,
apparently as a result of problems with construction, with sediment being washed
away. The most serious problems arose from the jointing system, as the overlap
seams assembled with hot air have doubtful soil tightness and are difficult (to say
the least) to realize accurately in situ. In 2008 the structure has been repaired with
non-woven geotextile tubes.

Figure 1 show some images of the dune taken on the spring 2010.

Fig. 1. Aspects of the dune reinforcement system of Leirosa, April 2010

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Estela Golf Course

The Estela golf course is located in Estela, a municipality of Póvoa do Varzim,

approximately 9km north of this city harbour and just south of a coastal protected
area. It is situated along the north-western coast of Portugal in a 3km-long dune
system.

Dredging activities at the River Cávado and morphological changes in the river
basin caused the decrease in the volume of sediments transported by the littoral
drift. The completion of other groynes and seawalls, namely in the sand spit of
Ofir and in the coast of Cedo Bem and Apúlia, further aggravate that reduction by
retaining some more sediments.

The first documented intervention, done during the period of 1 to 12 April 1999,
consisted of located reinforcement of the dune toe through mechanical ripping
with sand from the frontal beach and consolidation of this sand deposit with wood
piles fences (see e.g. Veloso-Gomes et al., 2006).

In October the same year a similar intervention was again required as the dune
was showing advanced state of erosion with the erosion cliff very close to the golf
course fence. Before the end of 1999/2000 winter two more interventions were
needed, one in January and the other in March. These interventions were
complemented by the installation of sand trap fences to enhance the aeolian effect
on the dunes.

At the beginning of the 2000/2001 winter season, after the spring tides of
September, the dune has almost been destroyed due to a storm-wave attack (see
e.g. das Neves et al., 2005; and das Neves, 2003). Persistent storms, generated by
a very unusual case of consecutive events, caused a series of dune destruction
events and compelled the execution of emergency dune repositioning works
several times in the period from November 2000 to January 2001.

December 2000 marked the beginning of the use of sand containers (big-bags) of
app. 1m3 in association with sand ripping. During October and December 2001
and May 2002, new sand containers were placed on the dune slope, and from then
on a number of these sand containers is placed every year, or several times a year.
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These interventions are typically carried out in three stretches, of 350m, 70m, and
50m, located at the north, middle and south along the distance of the golf course
boundary exposed to the Atlantic Ocean, which is about 2,500km.

Figure 2 show some images of the dune taken on the spring 2010.

Fig. 2. Views of the Estela dune, March 2010

Pilot Prototype Experience – Cortegaça

Background

Under the framework of a Research, Technology and Development (RTD)

project, “GeoProteC – Novas tecnologias de protecção costeira incorporando
sistemas de confinamento de areias em material geossintético,” (no. 23093 (AAC
13/2011), a pilot prototype experience was installed in December 2014, at
Cortegaça beach, along the northwest Portuguese Atlantic coast. Figures 3 and 4
show the more general and the more specific locations, accordingly, of the place
of installation.
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Porto
N

Espinho

Porto
Douro River

Cortegaça

Aveiro
Lagoon Cortegaça

Fig. 3. General location of the pilot prototype experience, Cortegaça beach (source: Google)

Fig. 4. Specific location (indicated by the white square) of the pilot prototype experience,
Cortegaça beach (source: Google)

Figure 5 is an aerial view of the protection works in front of Cortegaça,

northwards – or updrift, as the dominant direction of the littoral drift current is
north-south oriented along the northwest coast of Portugal, the pilot prototype
experience.
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Fig. 5. Protection works northwards (updrift) the pilot prototype experience location (source: DRAOT,
2001)

Two woven geotextile encapsulated-sand systems, of 16 and 22m respectively,

were installed in the intertidal zone. The theoretical diameter of both sand-filled
geosystems is 5m. The sediment used to fill in the systems was material locally
available on the beach. Figure 6 show aspects of the pilot prototype experience
just after construction.

Fig. 6. Pilot prototype experience at Cortegaça beach, in following day to construction (December,
2014): view towards north (left panel); view towards south (right panel)
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Objectives

The aim of this RTD project is to develop a new technology of coastal protection
incorporating geotextile encapsulated-sand systems, which are more suitable for
applications under severe hydrodynamic conditions, notably similar to those
occurring along the northwest Portuguese Atlantic coast.

The purposes of the construction and monitoring of this pilot prototype experience
are: (i) to check key dimensions of the overall structure in prototype, such as the
characteristic cross-section, longitudinal profile, crest-height, and slope; (ii) to
check for stability; (iii) to check for durability; and finally (iv) to check
constructability and damage during construction.

Early Steps Studies and Follow-up

The prototype construction was the follow up to numerous quality control tests
for the mechanical, hydraulic and durability properties of the various material
samples, both intact and with seams, which were manufactured during the several
phases of product development. The materials were also tested under wave
loading in small scale physical model. Further, small scale filling tests to assess
the filling procedure and product performance were carried out.

The positioning was chosen precisely to have the systems as much exposed to
climate drivers and weathering agents as possible. The structure is temporary, and
the exposed materials will be tested against reduction of the strength of the
geotextile material, caused by e.g. UV radiation, thermal oxidation, seams and
filling ports, creep or damage during installation.

Because the structure is located at the updrift side of a groyne structure, and
because water and waves (partly dissipated) are reaching the structure at all times,
this test is also interesting to assess its structural performance and the impact it
has on coastal processes. Note that there are no functional requirements to this
structure with respect to beach protection, as it was built purely to cross-check in
prototype the aspects above-mentioned. Of course for its positioning, in one of
the most dynamic stretches of the beach system, it is causing impact on sediment
transport, as shown in Figures 7 and 8.
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Fig. 7. Aspect of the beach evolution from construction on (December, 2014): view towards north
(right panel); view towards the sea, section in between two geosystems (left panel)

When looking at the evolution from immediately after placement (Figure 6) to a

number of days after (Figure 7), it is evident and remarkable the build-up of the
beach around the structure. In January 2015, that is a couple of storms after, a
significant part of this sand was removed (Figure 8).

Fig. 8. Aspect of the beach evolution from construction on (January, 2015): view towards north
(left panel); view towards south (right panel)

The ongoing monitoring is showing a good structural performance (insofar). In

addition, a notable sediment dynamics around the encapsulated-sand system is
observed. Although it is not a main concern for this particular experiment, it will
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come in later on in the project development and therefore information is being

collected.

Such information is being analysed in connection with results from earlier studies
collected from movable bed models on the performance of submerged nearshore
sand-filled geosystems for coastal protection (das Neves, 2015; and das Neves,
2011) and on the efficiency of different geosystems, both tubes and containers, as
passive (last line of defence) and active (causing wave dissipation) structures, in
maintaining a beach and in protecting the shoreline (das Neves, 2011).

As part of the next steps of the RTD project development is the construction of a
new pilot prototype experience along the northwest Portuguese coast. This new
installation will be much larger than the current, in number of elements and length
and construction height, and more aspects will monitored. The start of
construction is anticipated to the summer of 2015.

Conclusions

Geotextile encapsulated-sand systems can provide efficient protection in eroding

shorelines of invaluable landscape, with low to medium risk management. As
they: (i) are filled with material readily available in the local; (ii) can be buried
into the sand; and (iii) can be easily decommissioned if necessary, they are
considered to be less intrusive and are therefore should be preferred option where
possible. Main limitations to their wider application are the uncertainties
concerning maintenance requirements and performance on the long-run, because
of that it is important to learn from the performance of existing applications,
especially those at more exposed wave conditions.

Over the last decade in Portugal, due to the perception that hard coastal
interventions have functional limitations and generate negative impacts, new
approaches are receiving increased attention from both, government agencies and
stakeholders. Since last year two new applications incorporating geotextile
encapsulated-sand systems were accomplished, and two other are on track to start
spring/summer 2015.

Under the framework of a RTD project, a pilot prototype experience was installed
in December 2014, at Cortegaça beach, along the northwest Portuguese Atlantic
coast. The prototype construction was the follow up to numerous quality control
tests for the mechanical, hydraulic and durability properties of the various
material samples, both intact and with seams, which were manufactured during
the several phases of product development. First assessment conclusions are very
positive with respect to the structural performance of this geosystem.
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Acknowledgements

We appreciate the support by the RTD project no. 23093 (AAC 13/2011)
“GeoProteC – Novas tecnologias de protecção costeira incorporando sistemas
de confinamento de areias em material geossintético,” funded under the
Competitiveness Factors Operational Program (COMPETE), supported by
European Regional Development Fund (FEDER) in the QREN – National
Strategic Reference Framework (2007-2013).

References

das Neves, L., Moreira, A., Taveira-Pinto, F., Lopes, M.L., Veloso-Gomes, F.
(2015). “Performance of submerged nearshore sand-filled geosystems for
coastal protection,” Coastal Engineering, Volume 95, January 2015, Pages
147-159, ISSN 0378-3839, doi: 10.1016/j.coastaleng.2014.10.005.

das Neves, L., Veloso-Gomes, F., and Lopes M.L. (2005). “Coastal erosion
control using sand-filled geotextile containers: a case study from the NW
coast of Portugal,” Proceedings of the 29th International Conference Coastal
Engineering, McKee Smith Jane (ed.), Singapore: World Scientific
Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., Volume 4, pp. 3852-3864, ISBN 978-981-256-298-
2.

das Neves, Luciana (2003). “Geossintéticos e geossistemas em engenharia

costeira,” MSc Thesis: Universidade do Porto, Faculdade de Engenharia,
206p (in Portuguese).

das Neves, Luciana (2011). “Experimental stability analysis of geotextile

encapsulated-sand systems under wave-loading,” PhD Thesis, Universidade
do Porto, Portugal, 290pp+app.

Geosin (2015). “www.geosin.pt,” Last accessed: February, 2015.

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Veloso-Gomes, F., Taveira-Pinto, F., das Neves, L., and Pais-Barbosa, J. (2006).
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