The new coastal modelling system SMC-Brazil and its application to the erosional problem in the Massaguaçu Beach (Sao Paulo, Brazil)

Abstract

A new version of coastal modeling system (SMC) called SMC-Brasil has been developed by the Environmental Hydraulics Institute “IH-Cantabria” from University of Cantabria, University of Santa Catarina (UFSC) and the Oceanographic Institute of the Sao Paulo University (USP), with the support of the International Spanish Cooperation Agency (AECID), the Brazilian Ministério do Meio Ambiente (MMA) and Ministério do Planejamiento, Orçametno e Gestao/ Secretaria de Patrimonio da União (MP-SPU). SMC-Brasil is a user-friendly system specifically designed to assist coastal designers and managers in the analysis of marine and littoral dynamics to understand the changes in coastal caused by those dynamics. The system includes a 60-year reanalysis hourly database of wave climate database (waves, tides and storm surges) and bathymetric information along Brazilian coast, which help in the analysis of coastal morphodynamics along Brazilian coast. This system has been successfully applied to different study cases in Brazil to analyze their erosion or inundation problems and to propose different alternatives to avoid or reduce them. Here the erosion problem on Massaguaçu Beach is presented. SMC-Brasil has a dynamic design and allows the incorporation of future new databases, morphodynamic models and the implementation of new applications to help in the development of coastal projects and the management of the coast.