UM study: At-risk ports

This year’s hurricanes that hit the U.S. and its territories served as a devastating reminder of the vulnerability of many coastal communities and the need to build up protection and preparedness plans. A new study from the Center for Advanced Infrastructure Technology (CAIT) at the University of Mississippi looked into aspects of at-risk ports along the Gulf Coast and globally to understand how they can prepare for tsunamis and rising sea levels. The research team used computer modelling and geospatial analysis of natural disaster risks to identify the priority measures that ports can take to build a comprehensive resilience management strategy. “To me, sea level rise isn’t of particular concern ... It would take over 100 years to see any kind of significant sea level rise,” says Dr Waheed Uddin, lead UM researcher. However, coastal disasters such as hurricanes and extreme rainfall are of far more immediate concern and have devastating consequences for port infrastructure, disruption of trade and preventing emergency resources from reaching the affected inland areas. In the study, Dr. Uddin and his colleagues looked at the Port of Miami, Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi Coast, Karachi Port in Pakistan, and Hai Phong in Vietnam. “There is no band-aid solution,” he says. The best way to protect ports is to make sure “all natural protection remains there and will not be jeopardised by development,” says Uddin. “That means areas of mangrove, similar to underwater forests, which reduce the effects of waves and tide. Plans need to be put in place not to destroy these through development.” (Source: Ship Technology 11/09/17)