Abstract:
This paper describes a first approach on the risk
assessment in port navigation using GUIOMAR, an integrated
system for port and coastal engineering modelling developed at
the National Civil Engineering Laboratory (LNEC), Portugal,
using a GIS software environment. A set of automatic procedures
was designed to include a new methodology based on the
amplitude of the wave-induced vertical movement of a ship
along its trajectory. In this methodology, the risk in port navigation
is assessed on the basis of a combination of the probability
of exceedance of a pre-set threshold for the ship’s vertical
movements and its consequences. To test the new procedures,
a set of sea wave records obtained at the Sines wave-buoy
from 1988 to 2002 was transferred into Sines Port using two
numerical models of sea wave propagation and deformation
(SWAN and DREAMS), included in the GUIOMAR system.
The numerical model WAMIT was used for estimating the
wave-induced ship’s vertical movements inside the port. By
applying the new procedures, automatic generation of risk
maps was carried out for navigation in the vicinity of theWest
breakwater of the Port of Sines. The recent developments
contribute towards a more versatile and efficient GUIOMAR
system, which results in a more adequate tool to support
decision-making processes in port and coastal management
