offering a place of safety to vessels. 

 Natural harbors are those where the 

 protection is provided by the natural 

 geography of the area. Artificial har- 

 bors are those where natural protection 

 does not exist (i.e., on an open coast 

 line) or where substantial structures 

 are required to provide adequately pro- 

 tected water areas. Small craft harbors 

 are protected areas whose depth and 

 maneuvering area limit usage to small 

 craft. Harbors specifically designed or 

 constructed for fishing boats are includ- 

 ed in the general definition of small 

 craft harbors. Marina is used synony- 

 mously with small craft harbor, but gen- 

 erally refer to harbors for pleasure 

 craft. 



Although the word port is some- 

 times used interchangeably with harbor, 

 it is clearer to use port to signify a 

 place, usually both a harbor and town, 

 suitable for landing people or goods. 



Technically, a harbor for small 

 craft could be the water surface in a 

 naturally or artifically protected area in 

 a bay, lake, or estuary. However, as 

 commonly used in the United States, a 

 small craft harbor also includes the nec- 

 essary features for the safe navigation 

 and mooring of small craft. This would 

 include the following features: 



o A natural or man-made entrance 

 channel of sufficient width and 

 depth for traffic use; 



o A natural or man-made basin of 

 sufficient depth and size for an- 

 choring or mooring craft; 



o A breakwater surrounding the 

 basin to provide protection from 

 natural waves and swells from 

 passing vessels. It can also pro- 

 vide protection from swift cur- 

 rents. The breakwater might con- 

 currently function as a jetty to 

 assist in maintaining depth in the 

 entrance channel or as a groin to 

 prevent sediment or sand from en- 

 tering the basin. The breakwater 

 might incidentally serve as an 

 access road or path to the harbor 

 or to the waterway in which the 

 harbor is located ; 



o A system of piling, floats, piers, 

 anchor buoys, or other devices for 

 mooring small craft. 



A small craft harbor might also in- 

 clude the following items: 



o Special facilities, such as piers 

 for fueling and taking on provi- 

 sions; 



o A ramp or launching device for 

 placing small craft in the water 

 and removing them; 



o Backup land for parking vehicles 

 and providing access to the harbor 

 facil ities. 



There is no exact definition as to 

 how many of the above features are im- 

 plied by "small craft harbor." But, many 

 of the structures considered in this re- 

 port are common components of small 

 craft harbors (Figures 46, 47, and 48). 



Small Craft Har b or Functions 



The function of a small craft har- 

 bor is to provide shelter for small 

 boats and, in some cases, to supply sup- 

 port facilities for the activities car- 

 ried out by the boats. 



Site Characteristics and Environmental 

 Conditions 



Small craft harbors usually occupy 

 several tidal zones extending from the 

 terrestrial zone through the subtidal 

 zone when the accompanying parking fa- 

 cilities, launching ramps, and breakwa- 

 ters or jetties are included. 



Small craft harbors are more com- 

 monly located in bays, estuaries, inlets 

 or coves, rather than on open coasts. 

 Due to recent concern over construction 

 in the intertidal and near intertidal 

 zones and the diminishing number of 

 feasible sites, marinas are now frequent- 

 ly dua out of upland areas (Carlisle 

 1977)/ 



Placement Constraints 



Engineering . Environmental condi- 

 tions of the specific site should be 



92 



