Numerical modelling and full-scale exercise of oil-spill containment boom on Galician coast

Abstract

Using oil-spill booms as floating barriers must respect environmental conditions, mechanical limitations and operational constraints. Numerical modelling of boom behaviour can be used in order to prepare or validate booming plans, which respect these constraints. We present simulations of boom behaviour during an exercise in Galicia to support existing contingency plans. The main inputs of the modelled simulations are: environmental data on meteorology and oceanography, pollution field data and technical specifications of commercially available booms. The barrier structural analysis uses four-step modelling with an adaptive geometry. Modelled results are used in two ways. Firstly, a preparedness approach is conducted with a three-section boom plan to protect a mussel farm near the Puebla del Caramiñal. Secondly, a post-experiment analysis is made with a four-section plan and time-dependant boundary conditions given by the five GPS buoys position records carried out during the experiment. This numerical validation of the boom plan is complementary to the operational training of the boom deployment. The model results reproduce the barriers’ behaviour during the exercise and improve contingency planning for future response. The proposed approach has been generalized to other environments such as estuaries, ports and lakes.