Access to the coast and erosion control: use of wastes on local engineering works in the coast of Gaza City

 Investment in the coastal resources of Gaza City is vital to various developmental issues and projects. Access to the coast and coastal erosion represent two major geo-environmental problems to the city. This paper describes local engineering works developed by the municipality and local people to overcome such problems. A cliff of calcareous sandstone – Kurkar as it is locally known – (up to 18 m high), is located at a distance of 20–50 m from the water–land contact. People who need to reach the beach must cross this Kurkar cliff. The engineering works used to facilitate access to the beach are: old automobile tires, white waste skeletons (refrigerators) and construction waste, where long stairs were designed using these materials. Meanwhile the engineering works which were used as erosion control measures include: rock gabions, concrete wastes, construction waste, concrete walls and shallow excavations. Such practices are commonly used in third world countries and are characterized by inexpensive transportation and implementation costs. The performance of these methods was evaluated from an economic, environmental and safety point of view. Suggestions were made to improve the performance of these practices in the future. Received: 18 November 1998 · Accepted: 15 February 1999