Hydrodynamics, suspended sediment transport and morphodynamics associated with a nearshore bar, Burley Beach, Ontario, Canada

Instrument stations were deployed along a cross-shore transect at Burley Beach, southern Lake Huron to identify and quantify the components of suspended sediment transport (SST) that contributed to nearshore morphological changes over three consecutive storms. The transport by low frequency (infragravity) waves was the primary mechanism for onshore SST during the peak of all three storms. These low frequencies represented: (i) a standing edge wave, the presence of which was associated with large onshore sediment fluxes and the development of a new bar in the nearshore during the peak of the second storm event and; (ii) group-bound long waves, which directed sediment offshore during storm build-up and storm decay. The incident waves made an important contribution to onshore sediment flux. A well-established undertow was present during the last storm, which coupled with a standing edge wave seemed to be responsible for the erosion of the trough and the re-development of the innermost bar.