Gator Lake Breakwater Project

MRD Associates, Inc. was retained by the Florida Park Service to design, permit, and prepare construction documents for coastal structures located along the interior of St. Andrews Bay Entrance. The “Gator Lake” freshwater ecosystem is susceptible to saltwater intrusion from shoreline erosion and extreme storm events. Since 1984, the USACE has placed an average of 39,000 cubic yards of dredged sand from the adjacent Federal channel along the shoreline. This sand is “re-cycled” back into the channel thereby increasing dredging frequency and expenditure of public funds.

An extensive investigation was conducted by MRD to provide an in-depth understanding of the physical processes along the shoreline by analyzing dredge records, shoreline and volume changes, and historic aerials. Wave, boat wake, hydrodynamic and sediment transport modeling was applied to refine this analysis, develop a sediment budget and optimize the performance of the final design. The Florida Park Service selected four (4) breakwaters and a terminal groin as the “preferred-option” to reduce the shoreline erosion rate and provide storm protection for up to a 50-year event to Gator Lake.

MRD provided construction phase services that include the review of submittals, payment requests, conducting daily and weekly site visits to ensure the project is being constructed in accordance with the permits and Construction Documents, and reporting requirements. Post-construction monitoring is ongoing and is being conducted per the permit requirements.