Littoral cells, longshore transport and wave climate - An examination of littoral transport along the western shore of Prince Edward County, Ontario

This study discusses the wave climate and potential littoral transport along the western shore of Prince Edward County approximately two hours east of Toronto along the northern shoreline of Lake Ontario. The limestone headlands and barrier bars of the western coast are exposed toward a southwesterly fetch of approximately 200 km that can produce large offshore wave heights of 2 -- 5 m. The wave model STWAVE was used to transform a standard set of wave conditions developed from recent hindcast data to examine fair weather, storm and extreme conditions for five directions between south and west-northwest along the shore. The resulting simulations indicate a complex nearshore wave environment and a pattern of alternating littoral transport directions resulting from shifting wave approach angles. A total of seven large littoral cells were defined in the study area with each cell having a smaller circulation pattern principally along the barrier systems. The data from this research project would benefit coastal managers in the region as the economy and climate experience change.