Circulation Modeling for Proposed Port Facility at Ponce and Guayanilla, Puerto Rico

Abstract : This report documents a tidal and storm surge circulation study conducted by the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center's Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory to evaluate the protection provided by the proposed construction of a deep-draft harbor facility in the ports of Ponce and Guayanilla, Puerto Rico. Impacts of the proposed construction were determined by conducting numerical simulations of tidal and storm surge circulation at the project sites using with and without the proposed port facilities, Differences in computed elevations and currents between pre- and postconstruction conditions are used to determine impacts. Numerical simulations utilize the long-wave hydrodynamic model ADCIRC. Conclusions of this study are twofold. First, simulations show that the harbors of Ponce and Guayanilla do not experience large tides or tropical and extratropical storm surges. Secondly, pre- and post project simulations of a severe tropical event show that project impacts are small (less than 1.0 m/sec) localized reductions in storm circulation currents which do not affect regions further than approximately 1 km from the proposed project sites.