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IMPERIAL BEACH SANDBAGGING | Surfline San Diego
Dredge and fill project could affect surf shape and water quality
By:
Terry Gibson
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October 25, 2008
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While Southern California's surfing and conservation communities focus on saving Trestles from the proposed toll road,
a serious threat to Imperial Beach and the big-wave reef at Tijuana Sloughs is looming more or less under the radar. Elected officials from the City of Imperial Beach are pursuing federal funding for a $56 million, 1.6 million cubic yard dredge-and-fill project, advertised as "beach nourishment." Opponents have raised a litany of concerns about the project and the actors associated with it.
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Serge Dedina, Executive Director of the Sand Diego-based ocean advocacy group Wildcoast, points out that one of the proposed dredging sites for this project is located between the mouth of the Tijuana River, which regularly discharges sewage-contaminated runoff into the ocean, and a pipe that dumps partially treated sewage into the coastal environment. The Corps acknowledges that the other site is full of cobblestones. No independent sediment analysis has been performed. Local officials have only relied on a six-year-old sand survey done by the notoriously self-serving Army Corps of Engineers, which asserts that the sand is uncontaminated and beach compatible. But in Florida and North Carolina, independent geologists have examined fake beaches constructed with sediment the Corps deemed "compatible," and found that the material is often mud or other materials too fine to stay in the littoral system. Live ammunition wound up on New Jersey beaches, as did animal bones, shoes and other dump refuse that was pumped on New York beaches. Activists fighting bad beach projects around the country have learned the hard way that sand compatibility is a crucial issue. If the sand is on the fine side of compatibility, it will wash away quickly, wasting tax dollars and causing harm to the environment and surf, by changing the slope of the bottom. Sand that is too fine, fragile or of a plate-like shape also has serious consequences for the shape of the surf, for beach-dwelling or nesting organisms, for water quality and clarity, and for nearshore habitats such as reefs. IB project opponents are also concerned that the dredging itself will cause harm to the Tijuana River National Estuaries Reserve, to the reef, which is federally designated as a Habitat Area of Particular Concern (HAPC), or to both. The dredge destroys anything it its path, and can cause damage to adjacent habitats by siltation. "The agencies thought a 400-foot buffer would be sufficient to protect our coral reefs here Palm Beach, Florida," said Surfrider activist and coral researcher Connie Gasque, "but the dredging silted over the west side of our most beautiful dive sites." In this case, dredging would occur adjacent to the Tijuana River National Estuarine Reserve. Many IB surfers complained that past projects ruined most of the community's favorite waves, and created only one, which was dubbed "Toxics" because the water, post-dredging, turned filthy. In fact, chronic turbidity is a frequent consequence of the practice due to the use of sands inappropriate for a beach. In this case, one of the main concerns is that this project poses a particular threat to the reefs at Tijuana Sloughs. In an email to Dedina, the Corps implicitly admitted they had not taken surfing impacts into consideration by asking for information on the paddle-out and take off spots at the famed break. "I need to know exactly where the surf spot is in relation to the proposed borrow site so I can evaluate any potential impacts," wrote Chuck Mesa, of the Los Angeles Corps District. Dr. Rob Young, a coastal geologist and beach-management expert at the University of Western North Carolina, cautions opponents to be skeptical if the Corps returns with a finding of no significant impacts to the reef. Engineers use models to estimate the extent to which the sand will migrate offshore, a projection called the "depth of closure." The erroneous use of one such model for a reef- and wave-rich shore in Palm Beach County, Florida, is part of the argument the Palm Beach Surfrider chapter is using in a lawsuit filed to stop a beach project from burying reefs and ruining the surf at the historic Lake Worth pier. Young and Duke University's Dr. Orrin Pilkey published a peer-reviewed paper that demonstrated how these models are based on "useless arithmetic," and that depth of closure is "a myth." Young said that while he hasn't examined the IB project, the concept of a shallow closure depth is "even more tenuous on the Pacific Coast than the Atlantic coast due to extremely high wave energy and strong downwelling currents that pull sediment offshore." Repeatedly in southeast Florida, projects have buried nearshore reefs with threatened coral species, despite the "assurances" of the modelers. Young advises opponents also to pay attention to the "overfill quotient," if there is one. When engineers can't find sand of sufficient grain size or appropriate shape to stay in the littoral system, they simply bulldoze more incompatible material on the beach, hoping that the project will last a little longer. "If the overfill ratio seems excessive, you probably aren't going to get beach-quality sand," advises Young. Watermen Locked Out All of these concerns could possibly have been avoided if knowledgeable stakeholders were included. That's one of the surfers' main gripes. When they finally got wind of the project, the surfers, anglers and divers formed community formed a Beach Sand Task Force and the Imperial Beach Waterman's Committee. They requested a public hearing--this is the most expensive project in the history of Imperial Beach--but IB mayor Janney responded in writing by saying that, "such a hearing would be a waste of the community and city council's time." In response, the groups ran an advertisement in local paper with a list of requests, which include: --Holding a public hearing. --The elimination of any plans to dredge near the Tijuana Sloughs reef or estuarine reserve. --The assessment of beachfront property owners for their fair share of the project costs, including lobbying costs, since they are the primary beneficiaries. --Work with stakeholders to design an alternative coastal protection program that would minimize impacts to sensitive natural resources and important recreational activities such as surfing and fishing. --Immediately cease the contractual relationship between the City of Imperial Beach and the lobbying firm, Marlowe & Company. For more information on sand replenishment issues in California contact Wildcoast at www.wildcoast.net. MORE SURF NEWS SURFLINE HOME PAGE |
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Comments: (27) Add Your Comment
Serge Dedin 10/28/2008 07:49 PM * PREMIUM MEMBER - Real Name
Thanks everyone for your comments. And yes our local Stakeholder Group and Waterman's Council do have alternatives: 1. There is no beach sand crisis--we have a water quality crisis. 2. There are plenty of cheaper alternatives to the AOC project that could reduce harm to the environment and possibly improve surf quality (e.g. possible SANDAG projects) and 3) the locals have to be consulted. Please stay involved and active on this. Serge Dedina, Wildcoast, IB Local since 1971.
Trevor 10/28/2008 03:01 PM
If not nourishment. Then how do you propose to fix the situation? Any better ideas? You cannot leave it alone.
Woody 10/28/2008 12:35 PM
Another question; If you step on rebar and cut your foot and it gets infected can you sue the city and the army corps of engineers? After all, they are the ones who put it there. i don?t recall rebar occuring naturally in the wild. LB Jim should be MAYOR!
Woody 10/28/2008 12:31 PM
Janney is a PUBLIC OFFICIAL who needs to listen to a PUBLIC HEARING. REMEMBER JANNEY, YOU WORK FOR THE PEOPLE NOT SPECIAL INTERESTS!! Or was it special interests who elected you to represent them???
ibdjp 10/28/2008 10:08 AM
Thank you for a well written expose of an ongoing issue in IB! Please everyone get involved, we can make our voices heard!...DP
Roger Benham, P.E. 10/28/2008 09:50 AM
I grew up in IB and believe that I have a keen understanding of the ocean, eco-system, and sand movement characteristics.
What if there was a way to:
1. Enhance the surf off of IB.
2. At the same time create a condition where the sand erosion problems are mitigated and possibly reversed.
3. At the same time, and with the same effort, enhance the eco-system with non-permanent structures.
4. At the same time, develop and perfect this unique wave-enhancing eco-system enhancing erosion-control technology right here in IB in a way that could be used for similar problems all over the world.
5. At the same time develop this technology so that private enterprise can sell it worldwide and create a future of job creation and revenue streams for people right here in IB.
6. and…………. all of this could be done at a fraction of the cost of the Army Corp sand dump effort………..
Would you be interested? Name a time and a place and give me twenty minutes to explain.
This challenge is an example of the kind of forum we need, instead of the pork-pit and status quo.
john banks 10/28/2008 06:49 AM * PREMIUM MEMBER - Real Name
spend the same $ on a outer reef PROJECT like in NZ
bring fish surf and sure up what sand is left..all winners then, plus it doesnt wash out...might make to much sense though.
Cyrus 10/27/2008 11:58 PM
This is absolute b.s. Backdoor dealings at its finest, with the sacrifice being the environment as usual. Nice work Surfline for bringing this to our attention.
Aaron SD 10/27/2008 08:47 PM
I completely agree LB Jim.
former Mariner 10/27/2008 07:45 PM
IB is OK, don;t let 'em ruin it!
DJ 10/27/2008 04:55 PM
This is another case of the City of IB trying to make the town more attractive to tourists, while spending as little money as possible. In the end money will be wasted, the sand will be filthy thus defeating it's intended purpose, and after a few winter storms, the sand will wash away and we will be left with a famous big wave spot being put in harms way. It is unfortunate that the City doesn't see that it is in the best interest of all, if they re-draft this proposal and choose better sights.
Jeff "Spiderman" Knox 10/27/2008 04:17 PM
The Sloughs is a truly world-class break that is as much of a treasure to the surfing world as Trestles. Anyone caught inside on a good day can tell you how his or her waterman's skills were stretched to the limit. Anyone who has made the drop on the outside and raced a towering, nearly impossible, 300 yard wall to the (relative)safety of the channel, can tell you of its worth. Please help us protect this awe-inspiring jewel of a surf spot.
Gregory Tate 10/27/2008 04:15 PM * PREMIUM MEMBER - Real Name
Let the Mayor site just one beach renourishment program that has worked for more than 2 to 3 years.
Roger E. Butow Founder Clean Water Now! Coalition (1998) 10/27/2008 02:43 PM
The USACE, US EPA, City of Newport Beach and the County of Orange pulled the same crapola on Laguna Beach several years ago. They moved a dredge sediment dump site almost 2 miles closer, right at the Newport/LB border, only 3 miles offshore (due west). They procured a permit WITHOUT notifying me or my watchdog group, Clean Water Now! This dredged sediment is highly toxic from back bays and harbors in the OC. You should have your attorney look into NEPA failed notification violations/procedures.
IBMama2 10/27/2008 02:20 PM
View All Comments (27 comments)
Janney doesn't listen to credible scientific advice and the City Council will be losing an important voice for the environment, Pat McCoy. Protecting our IB coast by keeping activists present at all city government meetings, which means keeping Wildcoast strong and solvent at this tough economic time. Thank you, Serge Dedina and staff for the endless work you and your supporters have done and will continue to do - but you need ALL of us.
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