A long-awaited project to restore the beaches along Solana Beach's coastline has been completed, nearly doubling the size of the strand in the coastal community.
The Solana Beach and Encinitas Coastal Storm Damage and Reduction & Beach Replenishment project began in mid-January and wrapped up recently. Crews have headed north now to Encinitas, where a local official says they will be busy for the next 60 days or so working on an approximately 1.5-mile stretch from Swami's to just south of Beacon Beach.
Dan King, who is the interim city manager for Solana Beach, said on Friday that the crews replenished about 700,000 cubic yards of sand along a 7,000-foot stretch of the strand, nearly doubling the width of the beach, which had been about just 75 feet from bluff to the water's edge.
This project began in 2000 when Solana Beach asked for help from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to improve the shoreline. The permitting, research and environmental review process took decades. The tall bluffs lining the beach were sloughing off and collapsing at some points. The completion of the project is expected to protect the bluffs from further erosion.
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It is a joint-effort between the city of Solana Beach, Encinitas and USACE. It aims to “widen the beach to reduce beach erosion and restore the natural protective buffer between critical infrastructure and the ocean, while simultaneously increasing recreational area along the shoreline for beachgoers," according to the project's webpage.
Mayor Lesa Heebner told NBC 7 in January that sand was being dredged from “just outside of the wave line of the San Diego River,” then brought back to Solana Beach by boat, transported through large pipes and sprayed onto shore and smoothed out by bulldozers.
“This is a 50-year project,” Heebner said at the time. “So, we have been authorized over a period of 50 years. The city of Solana Beach will have renourishment every 10 years, if we find the money.”
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The overall cost of the project is slated to be $16 million. According to the city of Solana Beach’s website, it is 65% funded by the federal government and 35% by the city of Solana Beach and Encinitas, with help from California State Parks.
Beachgoers in Encinitas are being warned about:
- Heavy equipment and vehicles on the beach
- Temporary closures of section of the beach during active sand replacement
- Fencing to protect public safety
- Extra shorebird activity
For more information on the project, click here.
