Image

 ![Coastal research landscape used as the Northmoor University hero image.](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2026-01/camilo-botia-k4vFDPJoDZk-unsplash.1600x1200.jpg.avif?itok=ujHvC8nC)

 

 



Course code

MENG 420

 

Course credit

1.50

 

Covers wave transformation in shallow water, sediment transport, shoreline evolution, and the design of coastal protection: seawalls, revetments, breakwaters, groins, beach nourishment and nature-based approaches.

Design is treated as a problem in changing conditions. A structure specified for a hundred-year design life sits in a system where sediment supply, storm frequency and mean water level are all moving. The structure does not fail; the assumptions do. Students are required to state the design assumptions explicitly and to test their scheme against a projection range rather than a single value.

The course also treats the downdrift consequence directly. Protection that performs well in isolation commonly relocates erosion along the coast, frequently into another jurisdiction, and a design submission that ignores this is marked as incomplete.



Instructors

[Dr. Daniel Okonkwo](/person/dr-daniel-okonkwo)

 

 

Prerequisite

MENG 230. GEOL 330 or ENVS 380 recommended.



 

Terms offered

fall

 

 

Offering frequency

annually