An insight into headland sand bypassing and wave climate. variability from shoreface bathymetric change at Byron Bay, New South Wales, Australia

Abstract

The headland sand bypassing mechanisms in the Eastern Australian longshore sand transport system are investigated at Cape Byron, in response to wave climate variability. The mechanisms are interpreted from shoreface bathymetric change between surveys in 1883, 2002 and 2011 CE. They involve a split in the sand transport to follow a nearshore path along the inner bar and a cross-embayment path connecting the up-coast and down-coast outer bars. The relative magnitude of the net sand transported via the two pathways is controlled by a rotation in directional wave conditions. Two bypassing mechanisms were interpreted: (i) a predominantly cross embayment transport during unimodal east-southeast wa..