On the assesment of detached breakwaters on a sea-breeze dominated beach

Sandy beaches provide habitat and natural protection to coastal areas against extreme events. Beach erosion is ubiquitous of coastlines around the world and is very important given the implications in the loss of land and infrastructure in coastal areas. This problem is particularly relevant in low-lying coasts, with shallow and extended continental shelves, considering the increasing trends on the frequency, intensity of storms (waves, currents and surges), and the sea level rise due to climate change. Mitigation measures encompass different approaches including soft and hard engineering solutions. The Yucatan coast (Mexico) has experienced beach erosion over the past decades. More recently, detached breakwaters have been constructed to mitigate beach erosion. Thus, we investigate both permeable and impermeable structures performance in this area.