Fact Sheet
US Army Corps of Engineers
U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center
January 2003
Public Affairs Office
3909 Halls Ferry Road
Vicksburg, MS 39180-6199
(601) 634-2504
http://www.wes.army.mil
Sedimentation and Hydrodynamic Study of U.S. Coast Guard Station Boat
Basin, Port Huron, Michigan
Purpose: To qualitatively study sediment movement pathways and deposition at the harbor entrance and quantify
wave conditions inside the boat basin and to develop remedial plans to alleviate undesirable wave and shoaling con-
ditons at the entrance to and inside the harbor.
Background: The U.S. Coast Guard Station, Port Huron, includes a small boat basin at the extreme southern port-
ion of Lake Huron where the lake empties into
the St. Clair River. This location is ideal for res-
cue operations for heavy summer recreational
boat traffic on lower Lake Huron and the upper
St. Clair River. However, because the basin is
located in the dynamic lake-to-river transition
region, sedimentation at the harbor entrance is so
severe that rescue operations are limited and
frequent dredging is required. In addition, verti-
cal sheet pile walls contribute to undesirable
reflective wave energy inside the basin from
wind waves and vessel-generated waves from