HomeMy WebLinkAbout1999-09-28; City Council; 15415; Regional Beach Nourishment Projectrh .-
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STATUS OF THE MTG. 912at99 REGIONAL BEACH NOURISHMENT PROJECT a CITYATTY. ’
DEPT. AND ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW PROCESS ENG CITY MGR. %‘I&
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Consider the report and encourage public involvement during the environmental review phase.
ITEM EXPLANATION:
The Regional Beach Sand Project follows the U.S. Navy’s attempt to restore the region’s beaches as part of the aircraft carrier Homeporting project. Unfortunately, due to the discovery of active munitions, the sand dredged by the Navy from San Diego Bay to accommodate the larger and deeper draft aircraft carriers had to be taken to an open ocean disposal site rather than the region’s beaches
Through cooperation with federal and state governmental agencies, a plan to retain the beach nourishment portion of the project was pursued. In 1998, the San Diego Association of
Governments (SANDAG) Shoreline Erosion Committee (SEC) secured the approximately $14.3
million that would have been used for the Homeport dredging. The funds are now committed to
support the Regional Beach Sand Project.
In October 1998 SANDAG, in conjunction with Moffatt & Nichol Engineers, began preparing the technical reports and supporting documents to begin the design and permitting process of the regional beach replenishment activity. The main purpose of the first phase was to evaluate
possible sand sources and investigation of cost efficient methods of getting that material to the
coastline. After evaluating various sand sources, the consultant concluded that offshore sand deposits were comparable with the natural shoreline material. Also, the costs of dredging and pumping directly onshore were considerably less than purchasing inland sand and truck transporting the sand to the beaches.
Sand is projected to be placed on the region’s beaches starting in the spring of 2000. The most likely source of large sand deposits is located along the nearshore coastal area in 30 to 100 feet of water depth and within a mile of the shoreline. Dredging sand from nearshore sources and pumping the material to beaches is a technology that has proven reliable and effective all over the
world.
The next critical stage of the permitting process is the preparation of the Environmental Impact Report (EIR). SANDAG has contracted with KEA Environmental to prepare the environmental analysis and mitigation program, if required. The EIR is projected to be out for public review starting in mid October, 1999.
SANDAG staff will present a brief summary of the project objectives, further describe the potential
environmental considerations, and encourage public involvement throughout the environmental
phase of the project.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The funds for the Regional Beach Nourishment Project are a combination of federal and state allocations. The federal government has dedicated $9.6 million with the State of California providing $4.7 million. Currently, no local funds are included.
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