Strengthening safe, sustainable navigation across one of the UK’s busiest harbors

Harwich Haven Authority (HHA) manages one of the U.K.'s busiest harbor systems, where maintaining safe and reliable navigation is critical to the nation’s trade and economic activity. As sediment shifts and accumulates, shipping navigation becomes constrained and dredging costs rise. 

The Authority is taking a proactive approach, planning ahead for changing conditions and engaging Jacobs for technical, environmental and strategic advisory services for HHA’s channel management. Our program of services support the Authority to build a clearer understanding of channel behavior and identify opportunities for beneficial sediment reuse. It includes numerical modeling work, computational fluid dynamics and sediment transport analysis to improve HHA’s understanding of sedimentation patterns and future maintenance planning. A new data platform brings together water quality, flow and sediment data in one place, giving operational teams the insight to make faster, better-informed decisions. 

We’re also supporting dredging procurement and assessing how dredged sediment from the channels can be used to restore saltmarsh habitats. In addition to enhancing the local natural environment, this protects the shoreline against storms and erosion, stores carbon and enables the estuary to adapt to climate change. We’re also working with the Authority to explore opportunities for carbon and biodiversity funding.  

This integrated approach to harbor management supports safer navigation today while providing a stronger foundation for future dredging and investment decisions.