Natural and anthropogenic effects on wave climate and current regime in Barataria Bay, LA

Abstract:

Sea level rise, land loss, and sediment starvation are issues detrimental to coastlines around the world. Coastal Louisiana is a prime example of such issues and mitigation strategies such as freshwater and sediment diversions are likely to impact coastal hydrodynamics. In order to better understand the natural and anthropogenic forcings on wave and current regimes within Barataria Bay, a degrading coastal system in Louisiana, prior to disruption from large-scale sediment diversion input, wave and current velocity measurements were collected using bottom-mounted Acoustic Current Doppler Profilers (ADCPs) and wave meters located at two sites in the western and northern portions of the bay. 3D velocity data collected from the ADCPs and pressure data collected from the wave meters are used to quantify flow structure and wave characteristics through time. These data provide a preliminary understanding of primary drivers of wave and current movement throughout Barataria Bay. Analyses of wave and current data are used to inform the hypothesis that high energy gravity waves within the bay are primarily driven by wind activity associated with episodic cold fronts. Current velocity data are used to assess the role of storms in disturbing the pattern of microtidal currents and prevailing wind-driven waves. This study provides an initial understanding of wave characteristics and current movement throughout Barataria Bay and has implications for evaluating the impacts of restoration-scale diversions, storms, and tides on wave and current climates in micro-tidal environments.