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
Monitoring of Entrance Channel Navigation Improvements at Morro Bay
Harbor, California
Purpose: To determine if nonstructural modifications at the harbor entrance are performing as predicted (relative to
wave conditions and sedimentation) and validate physical and numerical models used as design tools to develop
these modifications.
Background: Morro Bay Harbor is located on the central coast of California about midway between Los Angeles
and San Francisco. It is protected from the
effects of the open ocean by two rubble-
mound breakwaters, an inner harbor groin,
and a stone revetment. Prior to the latest
channel improvements, the harbor was
known as one of the most dangerous in the
United States because of steep and breaking
waves in the entrance. Improvements in
1995 consisted of a deepened, expanded
entrance channel, and a sand trap within the
harbor entrance structures. Modifications
were expected to allow passage of most lar-
ger waves through the entrance into the har-
bor without steeping and/or breaking, and
creating hazardous navigation conditions.
Structural alternatives at the site lacked eco-
nomic justification. To optimize project de-
sign performance, numerical and physical model investigations as well as a limited field investigation were con-
ducted at the harbor entrance. Both hydrodynamic and sedimentation conditions were studied.
Facts: As part of the Monitoring Completed Navigation Projects program of the Headquarters, U.S. Corps of Engi-
neers, the Morro Bay Harbor entrance was monitored to determine if nonstructural modifications at the harbor en-
trance were performing as predicted. Evaluation of hydrodynamic conditions and sedimentation rates in the en-
trance as well as validation of models used as design tools were performed. Wave data (both inside and outside the
entrance), tidal elevations and currents, and bathymetry surveys were obtained to determine design effectiveness of
the harbor entrance alternative. Limited ground surveys and photogrammetric surveys were obtained for the south
breakwater to determine if any detrimental impacts had occurred as a result of the dredging operations. It was con-
cluded that improvements constructed at the harbor entrance resulted in improved navigation conditions and had no
negative impact on the existing structures. It was also determined that model investigations used in the design of the
project accurately quantified wave conditions and correctly defined sediment patterns and deposition areas. Data
results may be used to study similar problems at other site-specific locations as well as for research and development
studies.
Points of Contact: For additional information, please contact Mr. Robert Bottin at 601-634-3827
( ) or Mr. Dennis Markle at 601-634-3680 )"> ).
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