Coastal protection with BMS, the first experience in Italy

Abstract:
The paper deals with the first Italian project of a new coastal protection
system, consisting in draining the emerged beach face (BMS). The system
was built in Ostia starting from December 2000 and was working since
February 2001.
The BMS (Beach Management System) can be classified between a soft
approach and a beach management one and has no environmental impact. It
essentially consists of a series of drainage pipes connected with a pumping
station and a discharge pipe. It is mainly a coastline maintenance system and
can be also applied as a stabilisation system for artificial nourishment.
In the present paper the Ostia BMS characteristics will be described, with
the difficulties encountered during the construction phases. Moreover, even
if the systematic monitoring of the site is not yet started, the paper will
enlighten the first results observed, which appears very satisfactory.
BMS is a new method that is between a soft approach and a beach
management one. In 1999 Impresub, Diving and Marine Contractor s.r.l.
bought BMS rights for Italy. This system was patented in 1985 by Danish
Geotechnical Institute, who co-operated in many facilities installation all
over the world (Denmark, Sweden, Great Britain, Japan, United States,
Germany, Malaysia, Spain, and France etc.).
Unfortunately not many monitoring results are available, above all about
what concerns sea states. That means that the beach growth observed during
the BMS working could depend by natural events.
The drain influence can be analysed by comparing the behaviour of two
beaches with the same natural conditions protected by BMS and not
protected (i.e. the boundary regions of a BMS facility).
In Italy, thanks to a convention between Regione Lazio Administration
and Impresub, a BMS pilot facility was built in the South Eastern part of
“Lido di Ostia”. It consists in three independent sections covering a length of
approx. 400 m along “Vecchia Pineta” and “Nuova Pineta” beach. The BMS
construction was finished at the beginning of February 2001. A first
monitoring action has been performed to verify the BMS effects on the
coastline and beach profile evolution during its first working year.
Even if the monitoring results are not yet completely processed, the
recent coastline evolution shows that BMS produced good effects on beach
evolution.
The evolution observed will be compared with the surrounding places
one, considered as a zero level condition, and correlated with meteo-marine
conditions occurring during the experimental period.

Coastal protection with BMS, the first experience in Italy.