Talk:Artificial reefs

Review by Greg Rozynski

General remarks

This contribution provides a comprehensive introduction to the vast topic of a class of low crested structures, built for the purposes of coastal protection, recreation or both, also taking into account the impacts related to biodiversity, ecology, etc. It has a logical structure starting from introduction, through the description of materials these structures are made of, their geometry (layout, cross-section and dimensions), their functions up to design methods. Each section contains a lot of useful information; together they create a perfect standalone entry.

Need for more detailed articles on specific topics

The above fact is the greatest merit now, because in the current stage of Coastal Wiki development the users can benefit from accessing a comprehensive source of information on the reefs. However, future upgrades of Coastal Wiki should include separate detailed entries, which were only signalized in the master document. They should concern geobags, geotextile sand containers (GSC) and geotubes; currently they are missing in the Wiki and volunteers should be found to fill these gaps. Another missing entry is the wave transmission coefficient; understanding a tough challenge the reviewer recommends gradual development of a separate Wiki contribution on wave transmission/reflection coefficient in which these important quantities will be thoroughly (cross)examined. Being a very popular coastal engineering topic many future Wiki users may begin their search through such entry.

Symbols list missing

As for the article, the greatest difficulty with its reception is related to numerous symbols, which must have appeared in this type of Wiki entry. Most of them are explained right after their first appearance, but some of them remain unexplained. For example, in the equation describing the Iribarren-Battjes number one does not know what wave height and length were used in it: probably they concern depth-limited quantities assessed at the location of a reef. The same problem is encountered in the first equations in the Function section: Ls/X? Although the readers are immediately referred to a suitable publication, missing explanations are not helpful for them at all. To eliminate such difficulties a detailed list of symbols just below the Introduction section is postulated. Consequently, numerous equations require numbering; when these two major editorial amendments are done the article will become much more attractive to potential audience.

Suggested editorial improvements

Minor editorial remarks concern enhancement of the article’s completeness. The most important amendment here is the addition of a graph featuring the Narrowneck reef, used by the Authors as an example of artificial reefs. Consequently, the description of Narrowneck reef contains an unexplained acronym ASR, which is explained much later in the Layout section; this should be done just after it appears for the first time in the text. Finally, the quantities that are used in the equation defining the vortex ratio (F and W, Dimensions section) require explanation. A simple graph illustrating this problem would be welcome. The same concerns the explanation of the aperture angle δ earlier in this section.