Qatar leads Middle East development in marine & coastal engineering By Maheerah Gamieldien Starts Delivering environmentally sustainable,

high quality and cost-effective marine and coastal projects was the theme for the 2nd Annual Marine and Coastal Engineering Middle East Summit. Building on the outstanding success of Marine & Coastal Engineering 2010 summit, IQPC hosted marine engineering professionals at a conference that looked at how to deliver environmentally sustainable, high quality and cost-effective marine and coastal projects. According to IQPC the GCC currently has an estimated US $35 billion worth of marine projects currently in the pipeline. One of the drivers of opportunities in the region is the rapid national growth in Qatar and the announcement of new mega coastal infrastructure projects like Lusail City and the New Doha Port. The first day of the Summit included a review of the regional marine and coastal regulations, a look at the Maritime Cultural Heritage of Dubai and 2 case studies both about Qatars newest marine mega-projects: the New Doha Port and Lusail City. Mr. Tony Neal the Technical Director of Royal Haskoning and Dr Gary Mocke Coastal Science and Engineering Manager of Worley Parsons looked at how the New Doha Port was doing with regards to delivering a world-class facility designed to the highest international standards. A case study: New Doha Port, Qatar Their presentation looked at the importance of emphasising coastal and physical modelling, understanding the detailed master plan of the New Doha Port (NDP)and a review of the engineering design of all associated marine and onshore components. The presentation looked at the wave modelling used in the design for the NDP in detail. The presenter explained the model validation methods used and how the offshore wave climate conditions was taken into account in terms of the coastal modelling. This was used to check at how accurate the model was in predicting the waves. The near shore wave climate conditions also had to be taken into account during the design of the port so as to accurately predict wave patterns. During the wave model simulation for the NDP the simulation results looked at the waves effects in terms of how the waves energy was channelled, the wave height in terms of diffraction. The actual model construction was a mini model of the port with a wave simulator. The wave maker orientation measured in some detail what the wave heights would be under mild sea conditions so that the wave heights would not be too exaggerated. For small waves Keofloats were used as this would be more accurate in terms of measurements. This was in comparison to classical capacitance probes which were felt to not be as accurate. The results from the wave simulator would then enable the designers to determine how strong the coastal reinforcements would need to be to protect the coastline, e.g. Breakwaters. The results would make sure that breakwaters would be placed appropriately to manage waves and reduce

activity inside the naval basin by cancelling the refractive energy of any waves that entered the basin. The simulation included data of a 100 years of wave conditions. According to Neal the excavation has been done and the quay walls have been completed. The contract was awarded in January 2011 to the China Harbour Engineering Company. The dredging, reclamation and breakwater contracts are out to tender and the infrastructure and buildings are in the design preparation phase. It is planned that the material from the dredging phase will be used to fill the area needed for the planned Qatar Economic Zone 3 Area. Case study:Lusail Development, Marine package defining the importance of preproject planning The Lusail City development project which is currently underway was examined in this presentation by Mr. Jesper S. Damgaard, the Managing Director of COWI, is known for its expertise in bridge design and harbour development. COWI is one of the top 3 companies in Qatar when it comes to waterfront design. Damgaard shared that COWI have already built up a reputation for this in the Middle East having recently completed the Al Reem waterfront in the United Arab Emirates and currently working on the Al Zora waterfront project, amongst others. Damgaard highlighted 4 main elements for good waterfront design: Safe and sound design agreement including allowance for flooding, global sea level rises, storm waves, tropical cyclones, etc. Sensible and cost effective soil improvement programme Sufficiently high water exchange to maintain a good shoreline Designing good beaches

Damgaard presented the Lusail City development as a model for Waterfront/Marina project Development. Lusail City Marina is 21 sq/km with 30km of waterfront. The concept was developed in 2004/2005 and the design and marine works contract was recently issued. In his opinion it was probably the largest marine development in the Gulf. The concept which is a mixed waterfront/marina development demands that wave disturbances in the marina needs to be at an acceptable level. Looking at the wave conditions, Damgaard said that in the Gulf the waves from the North East direction are important but he also stated that the port is relatively protected because of its location. He pointed out that the important factors in this scenario were not the waves but the projected rise in sea levels and the extent of the planned reclamation area. The projected rise in sea levels should act as a realistic measure for reclamation as it governs the risk of flooding and governs the marine structures that will be built on the reclaimed are. To minimise risk soil improvement strategies will be critical. He added that an old Wadi had been uncovered with extensive alluvial deposits. Damgaard recommended that wick drains be installed at intervals which would act like a wet sock and that the soil should be surcharged.

Another point made was about the quality of the water, this would need to be closely monitored and the limits for acceptable water quality would need to be set. Processes like flushing, i.e. how quickly water exchange takes place, should be documented so that an accurate assessment of the water purification strategies that may be needed can be put in place. A large part of the presentation was taken up by the creation of beaches. This was, according to Damgaard a very important part of waterfront development. Beaches need to be sufficiently exposed but also stable. To increase stability coastal protection structures or headlands need to be installed at both ends of the beach. However, coastal structures need to be minimised so that the length of the beach can be maximised. He added that a good quality beach sand should be used to optimise the user experience. If these criteria cannot be met then Damgaard, emphatically stated that the beach should then rather be omitted from the design. The key driver for the choice of the Masterplan for the Lusail City waterfront development was the environment. The dredging planned for the marina was 25 million cubic metres and in the process 17 million cubic metres of sea would be reclaimed. The routine Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) included a field investigation for benthic flora and fauna using 26 video transects, 29 sediment and fauna stations and 9 water quality stations. The main vegetation that would need to be assessed for protection is the sea grass. There exists 9.3 km of sea grass beds within the project boundary. There are also two mangrove swamps but these were not natural and were replanted at Al Ahliyyah Island successfully. Damgaard further added that no coral was killed during the development as the original coral had died in the 1998 high temperatures. He stated that the water quality is generally good and there is no pollution and no heavy metal concentrations. It was reported that there was a bit of tar but it is origin was unknown. Almost 100% of the sea grass within the project area was removed. The result was that the shoreline was pushed back, in other words, the beach was reduced from 30 to 20 sq. Km with minimum impact on the sea grass. It was assessed that there was an 18% impact by the development on the sea grass after the shoreline was moved. With regards to the Lusail development, Damgaard was confident that the main issues have been addressed in the planning and design: Ends Wordcount: 1385 Coastal flooding Soil improvement Water quality Beach quality Environmental protection