Port of Altamira, Mexico

Master project report. The Port of Altamira is one of the fast growing ports in the world and is together with Veracruz and Coatzacoalcos one of the biggest ports of Mexico at the Gulf coast. It is an industrial Port with a lot of potential for expanding. However, the breakwaters of the Port extending into the sea caused severe erosion at the downdrift side of the Port (south side). This ongoing erosion is threatening a precious lagoon and some important land. The erosion can also cause a breakthrough of a dune row, which will result in a flooding of the hinterland. There has to be found a solution for this ongoing erosion. The definition of the problem and the goals of this project are identified in chapter 3. An analysis has been made in chapter 4 to get insight in the environment around the port, which eventually has a big influence on the erosion. Which coastal processes are causing the initial sedimentation transport and the quantification of the erosion is described in chapter 5. To determine which solution is the best for this problem, first the wanted situation has to be estimated. This is done by looking at storm condition and the actual situation at the beach in chapter 6. This way there is made an estimation of the requirements which the alternatives have to fulfill after they are constructed. The summary of the total of requirements is given in chapter 7.Hydraulic EngineeringCivil Engineering and Geoscience