Toward a Better Understanding of Sediment Dynamics as a Basis for Maintenance Dredging in Nagan Raya Port, Indonesia

Abstract

The Port of 2 × 110 MW Nagan Raya Coal Fired Steam Power Plant is one of the facilities constructed by the State Electricity Company in Aceh Province, Indonesia. During its operation, which began in 2013, the port has dealt with large amounts of sedimentation within the port and ship entrances. The goal of this study is to mitigate the sedimentation problem in the Nagan Raya port by evaluating the effect of maintenance dredging. Field measurements, and hydrodynamic and sediment transport modeling analysis, were conducted during this study. Evaluation of the wind data showed that the dominant wind direction is from south to west. Based on the analysis of the wave data, the dominant wave direction is from the south to the west. Therefore, the wave-induced currents in the surf zone were from south to north. Based on the analysis of longshore sediment transport, the supply of sediments to Nagan Raya port was estimated to be around 40,000–60,000 m3 per year. Results from the sediment model showed that sedimentation of up to 1 m was captured in areas of the inlet channel of Nagan Raya port. The use of a passing system for sand is one of the sedimentation management solutions proposed in this study. The dredged sediment material around the navigation channel was dumped in a dumping area in the middle of the sea at a depth of 11 m, with a distance of 1.5 km from the shoreline. To obtain a greater maximum result, the material disposal distance should be dumped further away, at least at a depth of 20 m or a distance of 20 miles from the coastline.