By Bill Wolcott/wolcottb@gnnewspaper.com
Lockport Union-Sun & Journal

WhisprWave

WHAT: Plastic Polygon

USE: Breakwater in Olcott Harbor

MAKER: Confer Plastics of North Tonawanda

COST: $1.5 million

YES: Bob Confer of Gasport

NO: Army Corps of Engineers

MAYBE: Rep. Loise M. Slaughter

TRADITIONAL BREAKWALL: $4.7 million



OLCOTT— Imagine a plastic breakwater at the mouth of Eighteen Mile Creek which would make Olcott the pride of harbors along the southern shore of Lake Ontario.

Now, imagine that it would cost $1.5 million instead of nearly $4.7 million. As a bonus, the Krull Park Beach would be significantly improved and more usable for swimmers.

Also, a local company, Confer Plastics of North Tonawanda, could make it and have it installed in a fraction of the time of a traditional rubble breakwall.

Newfane leaders were excited about the prospect. However, the Army Corps of Engineers issued a report through Rep. Loise M. Slaughter’s office saying that WhisprWave won’t work. The Lake Ontario waves are too high.

Waves on Lake Ontario may reach 12-feet and WhisprWave will only protect against waves of 7-feet, according to a report by the Army Corps.

That’s news to Bob Confer, the vice president of Confer Plastics.

“I would believe if the Navy and Coast Guard utilized it in an ocean environment, it could easily handle any waves Lake Ontario is going to have,” Confer said. “The waves that hit Norfolk were 15-feet and there were 100 mph winds.”

Confer thinks the Army Corps of Engineers should consult the Navy and the Coast Guard. WhisprWave has been in the development stage since 1997 and started production in 1999. It was created as a breakwater device. Following the terrorist attracts on Sept. 11, 2001 it got its second use as a harbor protection, battleship protection and as a bridge protection device, according to Confer.

Slaughter has not closed the door on WhisprWave.

“It is critically important to our local economy that we preserve the Lake Ontario shoreline. That is why I secured $70,000 last year for the Army Corps to determine the best ways to protect Olcott Harbor from wave surge,” she said.

“I believe it is imperative that the Corps use the technology that is the most cost-efficient, provides the best protection to the harbor and that has the backing of the local community. If WhisprWave is that technology, then I will work the Army Corps to see that it is considered for this project.”

Dennis Smith of Wave Dispersion Technologies in New Jersey has 27 patents on the 35-pound plastic polygons and Confer Plastics has two more patents for the production of the product in North Tonawanda. Some are used on the Gulf Coast and the Virginia coast. It survived Hurricane Isabel in 2003, according to Confer.

“I was under the impression that the Army Corps was pleased with the design of this project,” said Confer who did not receive the Corps report. “But, they were supposed to get that $5 million to build that breakwater and they wouldn’t want to lose out of the revenues for this thing which is much cheaper.”

The Army Corps’ traditional breakwall version is stone, rubble and wires which would impede water. With WhisprWave, the water flows below the plastic wall allowing fish to swim under it.

“In Olcott’s case, you would lose the fishery because the trout and salmon would not be able to move in the ways they’re used to moving,” Confer said. “A typical breakwater is just a wall. The water will hit the wall and splash. The WhisprWave twists and turns. That takes the physics of the wave and catapults it back into the lake. It turns the energy back upon itself.”

Doug Confer, Bob’s father, and Ray Confer, Bob’s grandfather founded Confer Plastics in 1973. It employs 130 people. Confer makes everything from gas tanks, to swimming pool ladders, to mannequins to new voting machines.

Wave Dispersions Technologies liked the way Confer Plastics exceeded engineering specification, Bob Confer said. Now, the NT plant at 97 Witmer Road is the sole producer.

Some of the hollow plastic polygons are filled with foam to make them stronger. “It’s great,” said plant manager Pete Miller of North Tonawanda. “From the tests that I’ve seen...I’m surprised at how strong they were and what they held up to. They couldn’t get the modules to break.”

There would be three Whisprwave breakwaters of about 500 feet each placed near the federal piers which reach out from Eighteen Mile Creek to Lake Ontario. There would be a smaller breakwater positioned to protect the Olcott beach.

The plastic polygons connected together with rubber tube and stainless steel cables. A series of chains connect to cable and WhisprWave units. They would be anchored to the lake floor on concrete blocks.

Olcott has long seen the need for a breakwall.

“Eighteen Mile Creek has potentially one of the finest natural harbors on the south shore side of Lake Ontario,” Town Attorney Jim Sansone explained. “It has two federal piers that extend out to the north from shore line. The problem is, most of the weather comes from the northeast, north and northwest. It creates a surge and comes in like gangbusters on Eighteen Mile Creek. A breakwall would stop that north surge and create a lot more useable area of the harbor for boating.”

With an increased area for boats, slips and docks, Olcott leaders feel that a break water help the economy, and bring in thousands of boats from Toronto.

“That could really open up our harbor development,” Sansone said. “That would be a great thing for us.” The problem, according to Sansone, is that the Army Corps of Engineers measured 10-11 foot waves on high-storm days. WhisprWave is only designed to break 7-footers. Confer strongly disagrees and thinks the WhisprWave will work.

“It would be a good story for Niagara County and Olcott needed a breakwater. It would be manufactured right here in Niagara County and there would be a tax savings,” Confer said.

“I don’t know how much we can pursue it if Army corps says it won’t work,” said Newfane Supervisor Tim Horanburg. “I’d hate to spend this kind of money and find out it won’t work. They need the Army Corps involved, especially if it’s federal money.

“I would have loved to see it work, but it won’t block that size wave.”

Confer, 31, is a graduate of Royalton-Hartland and SUNY Brockport. He writes a weekly column for Greater Niagara Newspapers which appears on Mondays in the Lockport Union-Sun & Journal.

Contact Bill Wolcott at (716) 439-9222, Ext. 6246.

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Tags: WhisprWave®, Floating Breakwater, Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Shoreline Erosion, Beach Erosion,

Tags: WhisprWave®, Floating Breakwater, Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Shoreline Erosion, Beach Erosion,

This site has all of the information about Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana. Great resource for local information.

Katrina nearing LA

Cat 5 storm has entire Metro area under hurricane warning; hurricane winds expected by 10pm

• Latest alert
• Watches & Warnings
• Analysis
• Plot & Track
• Latest photos
• Strike Probabilities
• U.S. Navy map
• Closeup Image
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• Washing Away
• Warnings
• Parish Alerts
• Maps & Satellites
• Storm Photos
• User-Submitted Photos
• Local Weather
• Flooding Alert
• Weather Toolbar
• Weather Radio

Tags: WhisprWave®, Floating Breakwater, Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Shoreline Erosion, Hurricane New Orleans, Hurricane, Hurricane Katrina, Beach Erosion,

By Alex Morales - Bloomberg - August 28, 2005

New Orleans Ordered to Evacuate as Hurricane Katrina Approaches

Katrina was upgraded to category 5 earlier today, U.S. National Hurricane Center spokesman David Miller said in a telephone interview from Miami. Such storms, with winds greater than 155 miles an hour (249 kph) can tear roofs off homes, blow down all trees and shrubs, and cause flooding. Only three Category Five hurricanes have hit the U.S. since records began.

``Katrina continues not only grow stronger, but it continues to grow larger,'' the city of New Orleans said in a statement posted before Nagin's press conference on its Web site. ``Everyone along the northern Gulf of Mexico needs to take this hurricane very seriously and put action plans into play now.''

Only three category five storms have made U.S. landfall since records began, according to the hurricane center: The Labor Day hurricane of 1935, Hurricane Camille in 1969, and Hurricane Andrew in 1992. Andrew, which hit southern Miami-Dade county in August that year, caused $26.5 billion of losses, the costliest hurricane on record.

The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale

Videos of Hurrine Katrina from AccuWeather.com

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Tags: WhisprWave®, Floating Breakwater, Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Shoreline Erosion, Hurricane New Orleans, Hurricane, Hurricane Katrina, Beach Erosion,

I read this story almost a year ago in National Geographic. It is part fiction, part fact about the destruction of the Louisiana marshland and the potential for destruction to New Orleans from a major hurricane. Hurricane Katrina sounds like it could be just this storm. I sincerely hope not, but I thought the potential similarities are eery and worthy of a blog post.

Below is an abstract from the story:

Gone with the Water

Joel K Bourne Jr. National Geographic. Washington: Oct 2004. Vol. 206, Iss. 4; p. 89 (10 pages)

The Louisiana bayou, hardest working marsh in America, is in big trouble with dire consequences for residents, the nearby city of New Orleans, and seafood lovers everywhere.

Get a taste of what awaits you in print from this compelling excerpt.

It was a broiling August afternoon in New Orleans, Louisiana, the Big Easy, the City That Care Forgot. Those who ventured outside moved as if they were swimming in tupelo honey. Those inside paid silent homage to the man who invented air-conditioning as they watched TV "storm teams" warn of a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico. Nothing surprising there: Hurricanes in August are as much a part of life in this town as hangovers on Ash Wednesday.

But the next day the storm gathered steam and drew a bead on the city. As the whirling maelstrom approached the coast, more than a million people evacuated to higher ground. Some 200,000 remained, however the car-less, the homeless, the aged and infirm, and those die-hard New Orleanians who look for any excuse to throw a party.

The storm hit Breton Sound with the fury of a nuclear warhead, pushing a deadly storm surge into Lake Pontchartrain. The water crept to the top of the massive berm that holds back the lake and then spilled over. Nearly 80 percent of New Orleans lies below sea level more than eight feet (two meters) below in places so the water poured in. A liquid brown wall washed over the brick ranch homes of Gentilly, over the clapboard houses of the Ninth Ward, over the white-columned porches of the Garden District, until it raced through the bars and strip joints on Bourbon Street like the pale rider of the Apocalypse. As it reached 25 feet (eight meters) over parts of the city, people climbed onto roofs to escape it.

Breaux Act Newsflash - National Geographic's October 2004 "Gone with the Water" Article Highlights Louisiana Wetlands

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I also found another story from The Times-Picayune that provides even more in depth analysis of the potential risks:

Washing Away

It's only a matter of time before South Louisiana takes a direct it from a major hurricane. Billions have been spent to protect us, but we grow more vulnerable every day.

Tags: WhisprWave®, Floating Breakwater, Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Shoreline Erosion, Beach Erosion, Hurricane New Orleans, Hurricane, Hurricane Katrina

Emily Strikes Texas' South Padre Island

By PAM EASTON, Associated Press Writer

...

"It tore away at some of the existing dunes, but the beach erosion was nowhere near what I expected it to be," he said. "We were lucky. There is no question about it."

Emily, a Category 3 storm packing 125 mph winds, hit just before dawn near San Fernando, Mexico, a coastal town about 85 miles south of Brownsville. The
National Hurricane Center in Miami said hurricane-force winds extended outward 70 miles.

Texas Department of Public Safety Trooper Johnny Hernandez said Wednesday there had been no reports of deaths or injuries related to the hurricane.

But more than 18,000 AEP Texas customers lost electric power, said Larry Jones, spokesman for the region's utility company. More than half were in the coastal towns of Port Isabel and South Padre Island, he said.

In Brownsville, about 10,000 customers of the Brownsville Public Utility Board were without power, board spokeswoman Lucila Hernandez said.

Those numbers rose and fell through the morning as each squall passed through the area, Jones said. Once winds die down, crews will make repairs and service should be restored, Jones said.

Buddy Finch, a supervisor with AEP Texas' Port Isabel office, said the hurricane's blow was much less than what he and his crews prepared for.

"I guess it probably cut us a break as far as damage or a direct hit," Finch said. "It's not a bad one for us. I'm sure Mexico is catching heck, but we're OK. You feel for the people who are south of us."

Jared Hockema, an emergency management spokesman, said authorities who surveyed Cameron County found no significant property damage. He said there were a few downed trees and missing shingles from homes, but nothing more.

Storm surges of up to 10 feet along with high tide were expected to cause flooding along the coast, but the storm only caused minor pooling on some roadways.

"It ended up being, as you can tell, just very dry. We get worse storms than this in the Dallas-Fort Worth area," Kunz joked.

As the hurricane approached Tuesday night, South Texas residents toting televisions, video games and coolers settled down on mattresses and blankets to wait out Emily in some of the 14 shelters set up across the region. The
American Red Cross estimated about 4,000 people stayed in the shelters overnight.

Cindy Ruiz, 32, took refuge at Elma E. Barrera Elementary School with 12 other family members, including her husband and eight children. To pass the time, the children worked on puzzle books while adults watched weather reports on the TV they brought along.

She said the worst part of the night was when the storm peaked just before dawn.

"It seemed liked the whole school was going to blow out," said Ruiz, who moved with her family to Texas from Iowa a few months ago. "It was very scary."

Emily hit Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula early Monday with 135 mph wind, causing flooding and ripping roofs off resort hotels. After losing strength, it regained momentum as it crossed the Gulf of Mexico and was upgraded to a Category 3 hurricane Tuesday night.

A hurricane warning remained in effect Wednesday for the lower Texas coast from Port Mansfield to the U.S.-Mexico border. Flood and tornado watches were issued for most of South Texas through the morning.

Some residents welcomed the rain that came with the storm to their otherwise parched region. Brownsville got only 2.85 inches of rain during the first six months of this year, about 8 inches below normal.

"It's beautiful," said 87-year-old Juan Manuel Jasso, who sat on his covered porch with his wife enjoying the wind and light rain. "We don't have any problems. We have got plenty of water and plenty of food."

25,000 forced into makeshift shelters; storm headed toward Gulf
NBC's Ron Mott reports.

Updated: 9:54 a.m. ET July 18, 2005

PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Mexico - Hurricane Emily swept over the Yucatan peninsula early Monday, snapping whole rows of concrete power lines in half, flooding some streets with knee-deep water and shattering ground-floor windows. There were no immediate reports of deaths or serious injuries as the Category 2 storm headed for the Gulf of Mexico.

Thousands of local residents and foreign tourists spent the night in improvised shelters set up in hotels along the famous Mayan Riviera coastline, on the eastern side of the Yucatan Peninsula.

The storm's wind speeds had soared to as much as 135 mph making it a fierce Category 4 storm when it sideswiped Jamaica on Saturday. It had weakened to Category 2 as it passed over land overnight Sunday.

Monday morning, Emily was located over the Yucatan peninsula near Tizimin, or about 50 miles east-northeast of the state capital, Merida, with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph. The storm was expected to emerge into the Gulf later Monday morning, where it could again gain strength.

Damage from the storm was evident everywhere on the Mayan Riviera, whose white-sand beaches and turquoise waters attract both Mexican and foreign tourists.

Arab island resorts are reshaping geography
United Arab Emirates building 'The World' and other enclaves

"The World," a collection of 300 man-made islands off the United Arab Emirates, is intended to look like its name when completed by 2008.


DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - From the air, it's an astonishing sight: two gigantic palm trees fallen flat on the sea, which on closer inspection turn out to be an intricate network of manmade islands.

And beyond the palms there's more — 300 artificial islets laid out like a map of the world. There's France, Florida, Ohio, even a mini-Antarctica baking in the 80-degree heat.

The $14 billion project that is reshaping this segment of the Persian Gulf coast is the world's largest land reclamation effort and the focus of one of its most fanciful land rushes. It's also part of Dubai's ambitions to rival Singapore and Hong Kong as a business hub, and Las Vegas as a leisure capital.
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The wealthy are already snapping up the homes on offer, even though few have been built, none has been occupied, and some exist only on maps of what is still open sea.

Even so, nonexistent properties are being sold and resold at serious premiums.

"We have watched it from the beginning. It has just been extraordinary," said Brian Scudder of Oryx Real Estate, a Dubai firm. Scudder said the properties, listed at $780,000 to $1.4 million, have doubled in price since hitting the market in May 2003.

Environmentalists see resort wiping out species

One island sold for $35 million
Thirty-three islands in the archipelago called The World, 2 1/2 miles offshore, have already sold for $7 million to $35 million each.

When the entire project is complete, in five years, there will be three "palms" linked to the mainland by causeways, plus the 6-mile-by-4-mile World, to multiply Dubai's beachfront tenfold to more than 400 miles.

Land reclamation for The Palm Jumeirah, the first and smallest of the archipelagoes, is finished, and construction of 4,000 apartments and homes on its 12 square miles is scheduled for completion early next year.

The largest, 31-square-mile Palm Deira, has yet to rise above the sea and won't be done until at least 2009, but 4,500 of its projected 7,000 homes have already sold, according to the developer, government-controlled Nakheel.

The manmade islands are not without their problems. Environmentalists say some of the millions of tons of sand and rock dropped on the seabed have buried coral reefs and oyster beds and contributed to the decline of fish stocks and turtles. The islands are also altering currents, exacerbating erosion on Dubai's natural beaches.

And the hundreds of thousands of new islanders will be living just 10 feet above the waterline. Last month, giant waves swept away five workers on the Palm Jebel Ali, one of whom drowned.

"If you build on a low coast like that you're exposing yourself to dramatic consequences, a high wave or high sea, or even if the sea rises," said Frederic Launay, director of World Wide Fund for Nature in Abu Dhabi.

No oil, but lots of resorts
Dubai, one of the seven territories that make up the United Arab Emirates, is ruled by tribal sheiks — not exactly President Bush's idea of democracy — and lies in a Middle East known mainly in the West for conflict.

Yet Dubai is among the world's safest cities, an alternate reality to war-ravaged Iraq 600 miles to the north.

Lacking the oil that has enriched other Gulf states, this Rhode Island-sized emirate is determined to be a global business player without oil. It has scotched almost all taxes, offers luxury resorts and shopping, and is open to foreign investors and residents. Its natural assets include pale sandy beaches and almost guaranteed sunshine.

"By the 1990s, all the beaches were developed. So we decided to build more," said Hamza Mustafa, assistant sales manager for Nakheel, which is controlled by Dubai's crown prince, Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

Sheik Mohammed ordered Nakheel to build the beach islands and personally signed off on the palm design, which maximizes beach frontage, Mustafa said.

"Every grain of sand is utilized for beach," Mustafa said.

For three years, the sea has bustled with barges dropping 6-ton boulders into water as deep as 70 feet, and dredgers blowing rainbows of sand sucked from the bottom.

NEW ORLEANS — Last week's Tropical Storm Cindy caused a disturbing amount of damage, making matters worse as Hurricane Dennis approaches the Gulf Coast.

"Tropical Storm Cindy demonstrated that with advanced coastal erosion in Louisiana, widespread disruptions and impact now result from a strong storm," said Mark Davis, executive director, Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana. "Two years ago around New Orleans there was general hesitation regarding evacuation plans. Today the public is anxious as the realization of the inevitable has set in — a direct hit from a strong hurricane will be devastating."

More than 5,000 square miles of wetlands, an area known as America's WETLAND, protect Louisiana by acting as a natural barrier for hurricanes and the storm surges they produce. Since the 1930's, however, Louisiana has lost almost 2,000 square miles of its protective wetlands, with another 500 square miles expected to be lost over the next 50 years.

Forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are predicting at least seven Atlantic hurricanes this year, with as many as five matching Ivan's destructive force. An unprecedented four hurricanes struck Florida in rapid succession during the fall of 2004. Since 1900, tropical storms making landfall on the U.S. Gulf Coast have caused more than $100 billion in damages (adjusted to 2004 dollars). Over the past 30 years coastal population growth has quadrupled; more than 69 million people now reside along the hurricane prone coastlines in the United States.