DEL MAR, Calif. — Thousands of cubic yards of sand will be coming to the San Diego County shoreline to replenish and protect the area from coastal erosion.
US Representative Mike Levin said the $30.5 million partnership agreements for the San Clemente Shoreline Protection Project and Encinitas Solana Beach Coastal Storm Damage Reduction Project would bring hundreds of thousands of cubic yards of much-needed sand to our coast. "This will widen the beaches and reduce storm damage, recreational benefits for the public, and much-needed protection. It will also provide coast highway protection for Highway 101, the North County District Transit Railroad, our marine safety centers, gas and utility lines, and other critical infrastructure that thousands rely on daily."
Tony Kranz, Mayor of Encinitas, shared, "With the recent intense winter storm, it seems that most, if not all, of our coastal sand has disappeared." Solana Beach Mayor Lesa Heebner said it also spurs economic development and recreation. "We'll be widening the beach to about 150 feet, and when we have more sand on it, it helps to buffer when the waves hit the area. Maybe one day, it might mean the removal of sea walls that are protecting private property right now. We hope to ensure that this wide sandy beach that protects the cliffs from erosion will continue."
Levin said it would help with rail service in the area. "Nature always wins, so we gotta be mindful. We have to replenish the sand. And ultimately, we gotta move the rail corridor in the sections that are most at risk, which is in Del Mar and, I believe, in San Clemente."
A local geologist, Pat Abbott, said sand placement is key because of ocean waves. "If we want beach sand, we must bring in sand. Beach sand is a good shock absorber. The problem is it doesn't stay there. It ends up moving down submarine canyons and gets lost." Pat also says, "Putting sand on the beach at San Clemente is a help. Because every wave that lands on that sand and spends that energy there is better for the train tracks than to have it roared to the cliffs or the base underneath the tracks."
The sand won’t be installed until the fall of this year. In the meantime, crews are still reinforcing the cliffs where the landslide occurred while we wait for the all-clear to resume passenger train service from San Diego to LA. The sand is coming from a borrow site a few miles south of San Clemente, and getting sand on the shore could take place over several years.
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