As many of you know, there is an overwhelming amount of information, data and ideas on the subjects of climate change and sea level rise available on the internet. For those living in coastal communities that are dealing with some level of sea height, tidal changes or flooding from the weather, you know there is not an easy and inexpensive solution to the problems. It is a community issue.
The City of Fort Lauderdale, one of 22 cities in the top 25 in the United States most vulnerable to coastal flooding, has adopted a seawall ordinance as part of the solution. According to the City’s website, its seawall ordinance in 2016 was updated “to establish construction standards that ensure that seawalls contribute to coastal resilience and mitigate the effects of tidal flooding and sea level rise”.
King tides in this area caused unprecedented flooding in 2015 and continue, typically in the fall, to flood low-lying coastal areas. The City revised the ordinance to set a minimum seawall elevation requirement to improve community resilience. “As sea level continues to rise, higher well-maintained seawalls will address short-term flooding caused by king tides. “
The only sound way to raise the height of a seawall is to install a new one that is between the minimum and maximum municipal allowances. When you raise the seawall height, the exposed height (the distance between the mudline and the top of the wall) is increased which requires additional strength. Typical concrete seawall panels are either 5” or 6” in thickness. In order to raise the height of a concrete seawall, panels over 9 feet will need to be 8” thick. As the size and thickness of typical concrete seawall panels increase, so does the weight, impacting both the cost and difficulty of installation. Typically the longer, thicker panels require much heavier, more costly equipment to tear out the old wall and replace it with the new panels.
Taller exposures create a structural need for 8” thick seawall panels which can be accomplished easily with TRULINE®, which is a vinyl form 12” wide by 8” deep and ordered to any custom length. This vinyl sheet piling product provides a form in which to pour-in-place a steel-reinforced concrete wall. TRULINE® is a vinyl seawall product that can most easily be installed with light-duty equipment or from a barge to increase seawall height and in front of an old concrete wall. Plus, the vinyl form protects the steel and concrete from the harsh salt water for a longer life. For more information, visit truline.us