Sediment Transport along the Coast of Israel: Examination of Fluorescent Sand Tracers

Abstract

Abstract The method of labeled natural sand particles was used to study sediment transport along the central Mediterranean coast of Israel. Six portions of 300 kg each were tagged with various fluorescent colors, and distributed at six different locations in the vicinity of the Herzliya Marina. The tagged sand was scattered at the end of autumn, and sampled three times during the winter. Sampling was interrupted in mid-January because of unexpected dredging at the marina canal entrance. The samples were analyzed at the Yigal Allon Kinneret Limnological Laboratory. The wave climate during that time was analyzed using wave data from Ashdod (40 km south). Wave directions measured in Ashdod were corrected to make them applicable to the Herzliya coast, in accordance with suggested directional shift values. Seven wave storms with significant wave heights of over 2.5 m were observed. Two of them clearly indicate a dominant direction from the southwest and two others from the northwest. However, the time duration...