A new book from ASCE to be published on December 3 includes 16 papers exploring the development of storm surge barriers to protect New York City and nearby New Jersey from the effects of a future deluge. Titled
Storm Surge Barriers to Protect New York City: Against the Deluge and edited by Douglas Hill, Eng.Sci.D., P.E.; Malcolm J. Bowman, Ph.D., P.E., and Jagtar S. Khinda, P.D., P.E., the book discusses mitigating the effects of a hurricane, but also explores how rising sea levels may require protection for the city from what are now minor surges. The papers included provide a foundation for the scientific and engineering research necessary to evaluate the barrier concept and explore options for its design and execution.
Topics include modeling simulation, and estimated effects of wind and storm surges; hydrologic feasibility; regulatory issues; ecological and climate issues; geotechnical issues; navigability; and design concepts for barriers at the East River, Verrazano Narrows, Arthur Kill, and Outer Harbor Gateway.
The book is an outgrowth of the conference “Against the Deluge: Storm Surge Barriers to Protect New York City,” which was held in Brooklyn, New York, March 30-31, 2009. The conference was sponsored by the Infrastructure Group of the Metropolitan Section of ASCE; the Environmental Sciences Section of the New York Academy of Sciences; and the Department of Civil Engineering, Polytechnic Institute of New York University. Additional information about the book may be found by
clicking here.
The
New York Times published an article on the conference and the book on November 5, 2012. That article may be found by
clicking here.