Beaches to undergo $9M replenishment

LONG BRANCH — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is planning to start a project next month to replenish a stretch of Long Branch beaches that have suffered significant erosion in recent years.

The project is expected to take three months to complete and will consist of replenishing beaches beginning at Cedar Avenue and heading north toward Howland Avenue.

The project will cost $9.34 million, with $5.3 million coming from the federal government, according to a press release from the office of U.S. Congressman Frank Pallone Jr. (D-6th District).

Pallone secured the $5.3 million in federal funds over the last couple of years through the appropriations process in Washington. The New Jersey congressman said obtaining federal funding for beach replenishment is becoming more difficult every year as the Bush administration continues a policy of trying to end federal contributions to beach replenishment projects.

"Long Branch beaches are in desperate need of beach replenishment," said Pallone. "In recent years, storms have done significant damage up and down our coastline. Maintaining our beaches is critical to enjoying them over the long term and to securing our state's economy.

"New Jersey's tourism industry supports 500,000 jobs and indirectly supports $5.5 billion in state tax revenues," he said, adding, "To keep that engine running, we need to ensure that your beaches remain clean, healthy, and large enough for residents and tourists to enjoy."

In preparing to move forward with the project, Pallone worked with the Army Corps, the N.J. Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the Surfers Environmental Alliance (SEA) to develop a plan to allow for a more natural distribution of the sand once the replenishment has been completed.

SEA and others have expressed concern that a traditional plan of replenishing the beaches in a straight line would create a sharp drop-off just off the coast that would possibly cause riptides and be dangerous for both swimmers and surfers. Surfers were also concerned that the project would negatively impact the surfing waves.

To address the concerns, Pallone, the SEA, the Army Corps and the DEP presented a plan that would create a feeder beach farther out in the water that would, over time, redistribute its sand to the main beach in a more natural flow.

The natural distribution should accomplish the goal of shore protection while mitigating any adverse impact on recreational opportunities, or even enhance them, according to the release.

Long Branch Councilman Brian Unger praised the Army Corps' new beach replenishment design for city beaches that now features an experimental "sand point." The sand point is a protrusion of sand fill from the beachfront extending out into the ocean and is designed to enhance surfing, swimming and fishing recreation while slowing beach erosion from Howland Avenue south to Cedar Avenue.

"I am very pleased that a project I worked on for several years while I was president of the SEA is finally coming to fruition," said Unger, a surfing and beachaccess advocate who was elected to the City Council in 2006.

"Congressman Frank Pallone was instrumental in guiding this project to the current phase, and local surfers, fishermen and business owners kept the flame alive and lobbied the state for the necessary funding," Unger said.

At Pallone's urging, the DEP agreed to pay the $1.06 million to implement this plan, according to Pallone's release.

"I am grateful that DEP Commissioner Lisa Jackson not only supported this experiment, but agreed to put up the funds to make it a reality," Pallone said. "This project shows that beach replenishment can be done in a way that does not dramatically impact either recreation or the environment."

Unger cited support for the new beach replenishment design on the part of former DEP Commissioner Bradley Campbell. He said that Campbell saw the importance of maintaining recreational resources while protecting the coastline from washing away.

Campbell was made an honorary "kahuna" by the Jersey Shore surfing community in a 2004 ceremony in Allenhurst, which was memorialized by Pallone on the floor of Congress and published in the Congressional Record on Oct. 4, 2004, according to a press release from Unger.

Jackson, Campbell's successor at DEP, approved the project's final adoption this year, which required around $1 million in special funding for the new sand pumping design and execution.

"We've been working on this for almost a decade," said SEA Executive Director Andrew Mencinsky, of Sea Bright. "The final design was a compromise between what we wanted and what the Army Corps was willing to implement."

"If it proves successful, it's a huge precedent," Mencinsky said. "For the first time, the Army Corps of Engineers is giving local stakeholders a voice in how these projects are designed, managed and implemented."

Mencinsky also reported that SEA is working with the DEP to build a multi-purpose recreational reef on the northern part of Seven Presidents Park.

"We think this reef will create habitat for marine ecology, as well as a world-class surfing destination that will increase tourism to the area," Mencinsky said. "Plus, we anticipate that the reef will slow down erosion of the beach. It's a win-win all around."

Mencinsky said that funding for the reef design was provided by a $40,000 grant from DEP. SEA selected ASR Ltd., a New Zealand-based firm, to design the reef and supervise installation. ASR's design is undergoing critical evaluation and modeling at the Stevens Institute of Technology, in Hoboken.

Contact Christine Varno at aville@gmnews. com.