Ms Arissa Shanganlall graduated cum laude with a Masters in Geology after applying her mind to research on a coastal zone that is poorly understood in terms of its response to storm waves and sediment dynamics.
Spending time on the beach as a child intrigued Shanganlall about coastal systems, and led to her completing her Masters at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Coastal and Marine Geology. Shanganlall is going on to her PhD studies in the same field.
Shanganlall’s research focused on the near shore zone. She examined the near shore of the Isipingo embayment in KwaZulu-Natal from a bathymetric and wave modelling perspective to assess the morphological changes of the seabed over a winter period.
This kind of work and the methods used address scientific, industrial and environmental concerns around proposed engineering schemes in Durban, said Shanganlall. It also demonstrated how detailed multi-beam mapping was effective as a tool for accurately assessing coastal change and modelling nearshore waves.
She hopes this will add to the greater understanding of the nearshore and the interactive processes that are responsible for the morphological changes that occur in this coastal region.
Shanganlall thanked her supervisors, Professor Andrew Green and Dr Carlos Loureiro, her parents and fellow Geology masters graduate, Kreesan Palan, for their support and guidance during her studies.
Words: Christine Cuénod