The next regional restoration project of the County beach of San Diego will be the largest to date, offering three times the sand previously pumped on the coast and 10 times the cost, said planning officials.
“The time has come to carry out another regional sand project,” said Keith Greer, deputy director of regional planning at the San Diego Association of Goverments, the main project agency.
In 2001, the agency spread a total of 2.1 million cubic yards of sand at 12 different places along the ocean eroding coast in Imperial Beach at a cost of $ 18 million. A smaller project in 2012 generated approximately 1.5 million cubic yards for $ 26 million. State and federal subsidies have paid most of the two projects.
Planning a third regional sand replenishment started almost two years ago. Two cities of the County of Orange – San Clemente and Dana Point – joined the project for the first time, as well as all the coastal cities of the County of San Diego.
This time, the collaboration effort should place approximately 5.8 million cubic yards of sand at 15 sites in the county of San Diego and three in the County of Orange. The cost will also increase, to around $ 260 million, most of which should still be covered by state and federal subsidies.
Studies show that expenses are justified, Sandag officials said Thursday in a presentation to the working group on the preservation of the agency of elected officials from coastal cities and Bayfront, the county and representatives of the American navy and the port of San Diego.
The beaches of the County of San Diego should generate $ 1.6 billion in income over the next 10 years in things such as hotel stays, conventions, tourism and recreational spending, according to an estimate.
“It is necessary to maintain the beaches of San Diego to maintain its economy,” said Courtney Becker, an associate regional planner of Sandag.
Oceanside, where two -thirds of the south of the city coastline were eroded at the bare rocks, will obtain the largest share of the sand – around 1 million cubic meters – almost four times the volume obtained from the annual dredging of the port completed in 2024.
Carlsbad would obtain 240,000 cubic yards for its northern beaches and 300,000 for its more eroded southern beaches. Further on the coast, deposits from 105,000 to 300,000 cubic yards each are offered at the mouth of Batiquitos Lagoon, Leucadia, Moonlight Beach and Cardiff in Encinitas, also in Solana Beach and Del Mar.
Torrey Pines, Tourmaline Beach and Mission Beach in San Diego, Coronado Shores, Glorietta Bay and Imperial Beach would also have sand.
In the County of Orange, San Clemente State Beach can expect 800,000 cubic yards, the San Clemente beach would have 250,000 and Dana Point would obtain 500,000 under the proposal.
The agency studies around six potential sites in the ocean just outside the surf zone that could provide sand, including some that have been used for previous regional regenerations.
A feasibility study for the project is being completed and should be published to the public in July, said Becker. After that, a second phase will begin, engineering and environmental work which should cost around $ 3 million and have so far been funded.
The third and last phase is construction, which could only take place once again in funding.
Sandag recently asked for a state subsidy of $ 5.2 million that would help pay the project, she said. Acceptance of the grant requires a local match of 15%.
“We recognize that local courts cannot pay for that alone,” said Becker. “It must be a local, state and federal part.”
Ideally, regional regeneration would be carried out every 10 years, she said. Most of the 2012 placement sand has long endeavored, leaving a large part of the coastal of the narrow and rocky county.
Previous projects show that less sand applied more frequently and, in the right places, does a better work to protect the coast than long deposits between large deposits, said Reinhard Flick and Oceanograph with Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
“This should be taken into account,” said Flick, who studied waves, tides, sea level and coastal erosion since 1969. “This is crucial, that we use the best available sciences.”
All the coastal cities of southern California share the problem of the erosion of the beach, the result of a generalized development which stopped the natural offer of sand of the rivers and the ruined seaside cliffs. The elevation of sea level and more frequent and powerful storms shrink more shore.
Encinitas, Solana Beach and San Clemente have all received the first fruits of the adult of the reappointment projects in revaluation of American army engineers who, after decades of planning, began last year and should continue periodically for 50 years.
Oceanside is planning its own project to replenish and retention of sand, called Re: Beach for over two years and is in the design and final engineering phase.
“We must not only place sand, but to permanently change the shape of the coast to keep this sand,” said Japy Timberlake, administrator of the coastal area of Oceanside, at Shoreline Working Group.
The proposal includes the creation of two artificial promontories or small promontories extending to the beach to keep the sand in place. In addition, the city intends to build an artificial chevron -shaped reef in the water to divert part of the energy from the entrants.
Like regional projects, the oceanid effort must provide for its functions of financing and approval of several agencies.
And in Carlsbad, the maintenance dredging at the mouth of the Agua Hedionda lagoon approaches a finish for the first time in four years. This work started in February and placed up to 400,000 cubic yards of sand on the beaches north and south of Tamarack Avenue.
Originally, the Agua Hedionda lagoon was flirted every few years by the San Diego Gas & Electric Co. to provide sea water to cool its Enci -Cell power plant.
Now work is the responsibility of the operators of the Carlsbad desalination plant, which filters sea water from the lagoon and adds it drinking water distributed by the San Diego County Water Authority.
Originally published:
California Daily Newspapers
