Cost of beach maintenance in the Gulf of Cadiz (SW Spain)

Beach erosion problems have been solved by adding sand to the beaches along the Gulf of Cadiz. The Gulf is located in SW Spain between the Portuguese border and the Strait of Gibraltar. During the last decade, more than 12 x 10(6) m(3) of sand have been nourished in 38 restoration operations carried out on 28 beaches. The main characteristics of the nourishment campaigns ( year, volume, budget, transport method, sand data, etc.) are presented. Loc ation of sand borrow sites and distance to the beaches are also shown. Moni toring programs have been performed in order to calculate sediment loss rat es. These results have been related to the beach length, the berm width and the budget in order to obtain a variety of relationships for maintenance c ost as, for example, the total annual cost for each beach. This information is very useful when developing a strategy in coastal zone management. Furt hermore, at least in reef-protected beaches, small yearly renourishments si milar to the yearly losses, instead of greater nourishments performed with a periodicity of many years, lead to an economical saving, as well as to a better use of the natural resources. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rig hts reserved.