Long-term bathymetric–topographic surveys (1957–2025) provide a multi-decadal record of coastal morphological change induced by the construction and expansion of Ashdod Port along Israel’s southern Mediterranean coast. Between 1965 and 2025, approximately 8 × 10⁶ m³ of sand accumulated south of the port’s main breakwater (MBW), while a comparable volume was eroded from the downdrift (northern) nearshore, indicating near-complete interception of longshore sand transport (LST).
The morphological evolution south of the port comprises two main phases. Between 1965 and 1995, approximately 4.45 × 10⁶ m³ of sand accumulated along the MBW and up to ~2.5 km southward, forming a pronounced nearshore sandbar–trough system and widening adjacent beaches by up to ~100 m. Between 2001 and 2004, the first major expansion of the port (“Yovel Port”) extended the MBW by 1.15 km to ~21 m water depth, markedly enhancing sand trapping south of the port. Since 1995, and particularly following marina construction (1995–1997), part of the northward-directed LST has been deposited between the marina and the MBW, while additional accumulation occurred farther south. Between 2016 and 2021, a second expansion (“South Port”) further lengthened the MBW by 600 m to a total length of 3.95 km, with its head reaching ~25 m water depth, reinforcing the interruption of LST.
North of the port, seabed erosion intensified over several kilometers, although shoreline retreat remained limited due to exposed beachrock. Sediment bypassing operations conducted between 2001 and 2021 (1.26 × 10⁶ m³) showed negligible retention. Volumetric analyses spanning the full 60-year record yield a mean net northward LST rate of (117 ± 13) × 10³ m³/year. This study clearly demonstrates that port construction and expansion have segmented the Israeli sector of the Nile littoral cell into a southern accretionary and a northern erosional sub-cell.