Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Northern Neck Regional Shallow Draft Channel Dredging Plan: Feasibility Phase, Donna A. Milligan, Cameron W. Green, C. Scott Hardaway Jr., Christine A. Wilcox, Claire M. Rae, Scott Lerberg, Alex Demeo, George Brooks, Mark Mansfield

Reports

The Initial Phase of the project (Phase 1), used remote sensing and other data collection to develop a method for determining which waterbodies on the Northern Neck of Virginia need dredging. The analysis included most of the waterbodies in the counties of Lancaster, Northumberland, Richmond, and Westmoreland. From this analysis, 19 waterbodies emerged as potentially needing dredged based on physical parameters and residential and economic usage (Milligan et al., 2023).

In this Feasibility Phase (Phase 2), more detailed site data were collected to provide data to the localities for consideration. These tasks were included in the analysis:

1. Historic shore …

Northern Neck Regional Shallow Draft Channel Dredging Plan: Initial Phase, Donna A. Milligan, Grace M. Massey, C. Scott Hardaway Jr., Christine A. Wilcox, Cameron W. Green, Mark Mansfield

Reports

The purpose of this project is to develop a regional dredging program for the localities of the Northern Neck. This report encompasses Phase 1 of the project, which included creating a database of waterbodies in Lancaster, Northumberland, Richmond, and Westmoreland Counties and the Town of Colonial Beach along the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers and Chesapeake Bay. Generally, these waterbodies can be categorized into three basic types of shallow draft channels: federally-authorized to include aids to navigation (ATONS), non-federal with ATONS, and non-federal without ATONs. Along the Northern Neck, presently identified, are 13 federal channels, 37 non-federal channels in creeks with …

Rural Shallow Water Dredging: Channel Assessment And Disposal Site Strategies, C. Scott Hardaway Jr., Donna A. Milligan, Christine A. Wilcox

Reports

The goal of this report is to provide general considerations for localities on the dredging and disposal of material from shallow draft channels, in particular for those channels on the Middle Peninsula, Northern Neck, and Eastern Shore of Virginia (Figure 1-1). This report offers background on shallow draft channels, both federally and non-federally maintained, suggests procedures for the dredging and disposal process, and applies the process to an existing channel. Existing data on the Middle Peninsula, Northern Neck, and Eastern Shore channels are provided to assist localities with management decisions. In addition to data for most of the existing federal …

Assessment Of Hydrodynamic And Water Quality Impacts For Channel Deepening In The Thimble Shoals, Norfolk Harbor, And Elizabeth River Channels : Final Report On The “Hydrodynamic Modeling”, Yinglong J. Zhang, Harry V. Wang, Fei Ye, Zhengui Wang

Reports

For over twenty years, the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Virginia Port Authority (VPA), representing the Commonwealth Secretary of Transportation, have collaborated on projects key to port development that also preserve the environmental integrity of both Hampton Roads and the Elizabeth River. The USACE and the VPA are working to investigate channel deepening in this region to provide access to a new generation of cargo ships (e.g., Panamax-class). The main goal of this project is to investigate the feasibility for Norfolk Harbor channel deepening in the lower James and Elizabeth Rivers and assess the environmental impact …

Incorporation Of Sea Level Change Scenarios Into Norfolk Harbor And Channels Deepening Study & Elizabeth River Southern Branch Navigation Improvements Study : Final Report, Rico Wang, Jian Shen, Mac Sisson

Reports

Previously the VIMS modeling group has studied the impact of channel deepening on the water quality in lower James River, including Norfolk Harbor and Elizabeth River. A study of the response of the water quality to future Sea Level Change (SLC) is required by present USACE guidance (ER 1100-2-8162 and ETL 1100-2-1). ETL 1100-2-1 recommends analyzing the effects of SLC on the projects at three future time periods of post-construction, including 20 years, 50 years, and 100 years. The future change of sea level is mainly caused by the sea level rise (SLR) in this region. This document provides results …

Incorporating Sea Level Change Scenarios Into Norfolk Harbor Channels Deepening And Elizabeth River Southern Branch Navigation Improvements Study : Final Report On The “Hydrodynamic Modeling”, Zhuo Liu, Harry V. Wang, Yinglong J. Zhang, Fei Ye

Reports

The Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) team has applied a 3D unstructured-grid hydrodynamic model SCHISM in the study of the impact of channel dredging on hydrodynamics in the lower Chesapeake Bay project area. This report is a companion report to that of Zhang et al. (2017; doi:10.21220/V5MF0F) and focuses on the impact of channel dredging specifically under the projected future sea-level change (SLC) of 1 meter rise by 2100. This is an average of the high end of semi-empirical, global sea-level rise (SLR) projections adopted by the Virginia Port Authority (VPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers, Norfolk District, …

Assessment Of Hydrodynamic And Water Quality Impacts For Channel Deepening In The Thimble Shoals, Norfolk Harbor, And Elizabeth River Channels, Jian Shen, Rico Wang, Mac Sisson

Reports

To investigate the feasibility for Norfolk Harbor channel deepening in the lower James and Elizabeth Rivers, one of the key services of the project is to evaluate the impacts of deepening the Atlantic Ocean Channel to 55 feet (from 50 feet), Thimble Shoal Channel to 55 feet (from 50 feet), Elizabeth River (north of Lambert Point) to 50 feet (from 45 feet) and the Southern Branch (north of the I64 Bridge) to 50/45/45 feet. In general, the shipping channel dredging will result in enhancement of estuarine gravitational circulation, accentuate the tidal and wind wave influence upstream, and affect the ecosystem …

Hampton Roads Crossing Study Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement: Evaluation Of Potential Impact On Surface Water Elevation, Flow, Salinity, And Bottom Shear Stress, Yinglong J. Zhang, Harry V. Wang, Zhuo Liu, Mac Sisson, Jian Shen

Reports

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the potential impacts of the proposed alternatives for the highway crossing in Hampton Roads on physical characteristics of surface water elevation, flow, salinity, and bottom shear stress. The analysis is part of the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), the Federal Highway Administration, and other stakeholders’ Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for Hampton Roads Crossing Study (HRCS).

Resistivity, Magnetic Susceptibility And Sediment Characterization Of The York River Estuary In Support Of The Empirical Investigation Of The Factors Influencing Marine Applications Of Emi (Year 2 Of Serdp Project Mr-2409) Final Report., Grace M. Massey, Carl T. Friedrichs

Reports

Vessel and personnel support was provided for a series of cruises to three salinity regimes along the York River. Data and samples from a standard suite of hydrographic and sedimentological measurements, as well as electrical resistivity and magnetic susceptibility, were collected and analyzed for each location. These cruises provided opportunities to obtain information that is being used to quantify the unique marine contributions to the early time TEM noise, including conductivity variations in the water and variability in bottom sediment properties in real marine environments, for use in the parallel modeling and electromagnetic-induction sensor work ongoing in the same project. …

Evaluation Of The Potential Impact On Flow And Sediment Transport From Proposed James River Crossings, Yinglong J. Zhang, Harry V. Wang, Zhuo Liu, Mac Sisson, Jian Shen

Reports

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the potential impact on flow and sedimentation potential due to the proposed new crossings on the lower James River by VDOT. This project was built upon previous effort in the same area (Boon et al. 1999); the latter used VIMS’ 3D Hydrodynamic-Sedimentation Model (HYSED) to study the impact of the bridge-tunnel infrastructure on the physical characteristics (including tides, currents, circulation, salinity and sedimentation) under the existing and alternative scenarios. Due to various limitations at that time, smaller bridge pilings were not resolved but instead parameterized. In this update study, we used an …

Thin-Layer Sediment Addition Of Dredge Material For Enhancing Marsh Resilience, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science

Reports

Building marsh elevations with sediment delivered from nearby dredging projects is a potentially valuable tool for creating, restoring, and maintaining coastal marshes, and may help slow or reverse losses of wetlands due to coastal development and sea-level rise (Woodhouse et al., 1972). . . .

Shirley Plantation Sediment Coring Study : Final Report, S. Kuehl, C. Hobbs

Reports

The old wharf on the James River at Shirley Plantation is a site of historical and archaeological interest. According to sources at Shirley Plantation, there are numerous studies of colonial-age wharves associated with towns, but there are none of wharves that were constructed primarily to serve an individual plantation. The wharf at Shirley Plantation is such a structure. Shirley Plantation is working with marine archaeologists from East Carolina University to assess the archaeology of the pier. In order to enhance the understanding of the wharf, it would be beneficial both to better visualize the condition of the river bottom in …

Chemical And Toxicological Characterization Of The Upper York River, Virginia The Mattaponi And Pamunkey Rivers, Morris H. Roberts Jr., Mark Richards, Peter F. Delisle

Reports

This study describes the most extensive effort to characterize the chemistry, toxicology and community of the sediments of the Mattaponi and Pamunkey Rivers. This was accomplished using a study design modified to expand the number of stations occupied by reducing the cost of analyses by compositing replicate samples collected from each study site rather than performing toxicity tests on these samples individually. In previous studies, the variability in field replicate samples was equivalent to the variability in laboratory replicates. This design has long been used to analyze samples for various chemical contaminants as a cost savings endeavor. More ....

Chemical And Toxicological Characterization Of The Lower Mobjack Bay, York River, Virginia Segment Of The Chesapeake Bay, Morris H. Roberts Jr., Mark A. Richards, Peter F. Delisle

Reports

The Chesapeake Bay segment called Lower Mobjack Bay Lower York River Virginia was found to have insufficient data to characterize in 1999. Therefore this area was selected for a chemical, toxicological, benthic community characterization study of the sediments in 2002. The segment was divided into 3 strata: the lower York River, the Poquoson River, and Back River, each with 4 randomly selected stations. Samples were collected in October 2002 for evaluation of conditions.

There were few significant chemical exceedances of the ER-L or ER-M in the three strata and no toxicologically effects from exposure to sediment samples from any stratum. …

Modeling Sediment Transport In The York River : Final Report, Jerome P.-Y. Maa

Reports

Numerical simulation on the formation of an Estuarine Turbidity Maximum (ETM) is a difficult task because of the incomplete knowledge on cohesive sediment transport. For example, it is difficult to well simulate the erosion process when the bed erosion properties are only poorly known. It is also hard to simulate the settling process when the bulk density and size of suspended sediment flocs are changing with the ambient environments.

Despite of the difficulties, some processes can be parametricalized, even not perfectly, to make the simulation results close to observed. In this project, we demonstrated the possibility of using a constant …

The Chesapeake Bay : A Synopsis, William J. Hargis Jr.

Reports

No abstract provided.

Environmental Survey Of Potential Sand Resource Sites, Offshore Delaware And Maryland : Final Report, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science

Reports

• Technical summary / Carl H. Hobbs
• Non-technical summary / Carl H. Hobbs
• Part. 1. Benthic mapping and resource evaluation of potential sand mining areas, offshore Mayland and Delaware, 1998-1999 / G.R. Cutter and R.J. Diaz
• Part. 2. Transitory species (vertebrate nekton) / John A. Musick
• Part. 3. Literature survey of reproductive finfish and ichthyoplankton present in proposed sand mining locations within the Middle Atlantic Bight / John Olney, Donna Marie Bilkovic
• Part. 4. Potential modifications to waves due to dredging and other oceanographic considerations / Jerome P.-Y. Maa, Sung C. Kim
• Part. 5. Maryland-Delaware shoreline : long-term trends and short-term …

Laser In-Situ Scattering And Transmissometer (Lisst) Observations In Support Of The Sensor Insertion System Duck, Nc October, 1997, Grace M. Massey, Carl T. Friedrichs

Reports

The objective of this portion of the study was to collect LIS ST time series at times corresponding to collection of pumped samples of suspended sediment across the width of the surf zone during a major field experiment called SandyDuck '97. The pumped samples were analyzed for total percent sand (>60 micron), total percent mud (0.8 - 60 micron), organic content and sand size distribution. The LISST measures the particle size distribution from 5-500 microns. The purpose was to provide a high quality data set of pumped samples with which to later test the sensitivity of indirect measurements of …

Data Report: Pump Sampling And Sediment Analysis In Support Of The Sensor Insertion System Duck, N.C. April And October, 1997, Grace M. Massey, Carl T. Friiedrichs, Amo De Kruif, Daan C. Rijks

Reports

The objectives of this study were to (i) construct a pumping system, (ii) operate the system and collect samples of suspended sediment across the width of the surf zone during two major field experiments planned for the SIS in 1997, and (iii) analyze the resulting samples for sand concentration, sand size distribution, total percent sand, total percent mud, and organic content. The purpose was to provide a high quality data set of pump samples with which to later test the sensitivity of indirect measurements of suspended sand concentration to the presence of suspended mud. The response of OBSs is known …

Sediments And Shallow Stratigraphy Of A Portion Of The Continental Shelf Of Southeastern Virginia, Carl H. Hobbs Iii

Reports

A network of high-resolution, seismic-reflection profiles and grab samples of the surficial sediments of the inner continental shelf of southeastern Virginia demonstrate that the Quaternary geology of the region is more complex than indicated by earlier studies. The spatial variability of the surficial sediments depicts active processes, such as outflow from Chesapeake Bay, as well as the underlying geology in outcrops of finer grained sediments near False Cape.

The complexity of the Quaternary geology results from large and small scale fluctuations in sea level. Individual, relatively large-scale, seismostratigraphic units are separated by erosional surfaces formed during the major changes in …

Public Beach Assessment Report Gloucester Point Public Beach, Gloucester County, Virginia, Donna A. Milligan, C. Scott Hardaway Jr., George R. Thomas

Reports

Gloucester Point Public Beach is located at the southern end of Gloucester County, Virginia on the York River. It is a southeastward facing shoreline about 960 ft long and it is part of a larger stretch of moderately low shore between Sarah Creek and the George P. Coleman Bridge. While no shoreline improvement projects have taken place at the public beach, shore protection projects updrift and including the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) affect it. In 1983, erosion along the shoreline at VIMS just updrift of the public beach led to the installation of a riprap revetment in front …

Investigations Of Isolated Sand Shoals And Associated Deposits, Virginia Inner Shelf : Final Contract Report Primarily In The Form Of A Data Report, C. H. Hobbs Iii

Reports

This report primarily serves to present minimally interpreted data from a tight spaced set of high-resolution, seismic-reflection, sub-bottom profiles obtained during the summer of 1992. The profiles were run in the inner continental shelf adjacent to Virginia Beach, Virginia as part of an investigation of offshore sounds potentially usable in beach nourishment and hurricane protection projects along Virginia's Atlantic shore south of the mouth of Chesapeake Bay. Figure 1 depicts the general study area.

Berquist and Gomillion (1993) presented an interpretation of a small portion of the work. A larger, interpretive report (Hardaway et al., 1995) also utilizes information from …

A Three-Dimensional Hydrodynamic-Eutrophication Model (Hem-3d) : Description Of Water Quality And Sediment Process Submodels, Kyeong Park, Albert Y. Kuo, Jian Shen, John M. Hamrick

Reports

Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) has been developing a general purpose three-dimensional hydrodynamic and sediment transport model, Environmental Fluid Dynamics Computer Code (EFDC; Hamrick 1992). The real-time model simulates density and topographically-induced circulation as well as tidal and wind-driven flows, and spatial and temporal distributions of salinity, temperature and sediment concentration. The model also is capable of handling the wetting and drying of shallow area, hydraulic control structures, vegetation resistance for wetlands and Lagrangian particle tracking. The information of physical transport processes, both advective and diffusive, simulated by the hydrodynamic model can be used to account for the transport …

Virginia Beach Offshore Sediment Study, C. R. Berquist Jr., Naomi Gomillion

Reports

This investigation was initiated from discussions among members of the Minerals Management Service-Virginia Task Force in an effort to locate a nearby and offshore source of beach-quality sand for the resort strip at Virginia Beach. Because of the increasing difficulty of relying upon land-based material, attention has been focused on investigating offshore sources. Previous work (Kimball and others, 1991) suggests an offshore deposit of beach-quality sands is located on a shoal between 3 and 8 km east of Sandbridge. Planned vibracoring on this shoal during the fall of 1993 should establish the viability of the sand occurrence. Although material from …

Sediment Characterization Of South Atlantic Systems, Maynard M. Nichols

Reports

The estuarine systems selected are from the NOAA National Estuarine Inventory in the EMAP Virginian Province (Figure 1). The principal spatial unit of each system is the estuarine drainage area (EDA) defined in the NEI data atlas (U.S. NOAA, 1985). The sediment and contaminant distributions embrace the estuarine bottom area, i.e. from the head of tides to the mouth where the estuary meets the ocean, bay or sound as determined by physiographic features (U.S. NOAA, 1985). Data coverage embraces whole estuaries and farfield distributions. Chart scales are smaller than 1:80,000 andchart units larger thaqn 0.1 square kilometer.

Sediment Characterization Of Southern New England Systems, The Hudson And Delaware Estuaries, Virginian Province, Maynard M. Nichols, Caroline Brouwer-Riel, Et Al

Reports

The estuarine systems selected are from the NOAA National Estuarine Inventory in the EMAP Virginian Province (Figure 1). The principal spatial unit of each system is the estuarine drainage area (EDA) defined in the NEI data atlas (U.S. NOAA, 1985). The sediment and contaminant distributions embrace the estuarine bottom area, i.e. from the head of tides to the mouth where the estuary meets the ocean, bay or sound as determined by physiographic features (U.S. NOAA, 1985). Data coverage embraces whole estuaries and farfield distributions. Chart scales are smaller than 1:80,000 and the minimum mappable unit is 1.0 km2 or larger …

Sediment Characterization Of North Atlantic Systems, New England, Maynard M. Nichols, Caroline Brouwer-Riel

Reports

The estuarine systems selected are from the NOAA National Estuarine Inventory in the North Atlantic region (Figure 1). The principal spatial unit of each system is the estuarine drainage area (EDA) defined in the NEI data atlas (U.S. NOAA, 1985). The sediment distributions embrace the estuarine bottom area, i.e. from the head of tides to the mouth where the estuary meets the ocean, bay or sound as determined by physiographic features (U.S. NOAA, 1985). Data coverage embraces whole estuaries and far-field distributions. Chart scales are smaller than 1:80,000 and chart units larger than 0.06 square kilometer.

Sediment Inventory And Characterization Summary For The Desk-Top Information System (Compas), Maynard M. Nichols, Caroline Brouwer-Riel, Et Al

Reports

In this report sediment maps are compiled together with basic data on the morphology and hydrology as well as sediment sources, pathways and sinks for 21 estuarine systems In the Virginia Province (Figure 1). Additionally, It provides a processoriented characterization summary. Supportive details, documentation and references are provided In companion characterization reports.

Sediment Characterization Of Coastal Lagoons And Bays, Mid-Atlantic Region, Maynard N. Nichols, C. M. Brouwer-Riel

Reports

Sediment characterizations for the following lagoons and bays:

• Great South Bay
• Barnegat Bay
• New Jersey Inland Bays, Great Sound
• Delaware Inland Bays
• Chincoteague Bay

Sediment Characterization Of Chesaapeake Bay And Its Tributaries, Maynard M. Nichols, S. C. Kim, C. M. Brouwer

Reports

Sediment characterizations for the following estuaries and rivers:

• Chesapeake Bay
• Potomac River
• Rappahannock River
• York River
• James River
• Chester River
• Choptank River