KBD delivered a first-of-its-kind adaptive monitoring and management program to enable marina dredging while safeguarding high-value habitats in a proposed marine reserve.
The island’s setting includes coral reefs, seagrass beds, turtle nesting beaches, migratory seabirds, and resident osprey pairs. KBD began with marine and terrestrial baseline surveys to map receptors, set thresholds, and define risk pathways—establishing clear, defensible criteria for construction in an ecologically sensitive zone.
KBD prepared a Dredge Management Plan (DMP) that linked real-time environmental thresholds to operational triggers. The control loop combined:
Continuous turbidity monitoring (fixed stations) plus in-situ spot sampling by marine scientists.
Predictive & hindcast hydrodynamic modelling to forecast plume dispersion and optimize sequencing, plant settings, and silt-screen layouts.
Aerial drone inspections to visualize plumes and verify containment in near-real time.
Weekly Turbidity Management Group meetings to review results and adapt methods, timings, or work areas as needed.
Field compliance checks: silt-screen inspections, intertidal walkovers, seabird monitoring, and incident investigation.
13,000 coral colonies relocated from the dredge footprint prior to works.
Osprey nests relocated and measures implemented for turtle nesting zones.
Development delivered in a sensitive marine setting with responsive, evidence-based management.
Operational decisions driven by live data, reducing risk windows and avoiding exceedances through proactive adjustments.
Model institutionalized: the adaptive DMP approach became the island’s standard procedure for subsequent dredging programs.
When impacts can’t be fully avoided, a science-led, adaptive framework unites monitoring and modelling to protect irreplaceable biodiversity, meet regulator expectations, and keep national-strategic projects on schedule.
Clear environmental triggers and responses embedded into the monitoring plan.
Live Data ControlContinuous turbidity sensors + field spot checks drive same-day adjustments.
Consistent & DefensibleWeekly governance and an auditable record make the approach repeatable and compliant.
With a multidisciplinary team of over 150 professionals KBD combines local talent with global experts under one roof. Our mission is to drive transformative change and help achieve the nation’s Vision 2030 by providing strategic, science-backed solutions.
