A trio of Jersey Shore towns is set to undergo a new round of beach replenishment work.
On Thursday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will begin adding new sand to beaches in Long Branch, Monmouth Beach and Sea Bright.
Barring any weather or equipment delays, the Army Corps expects the work to be done by the end of November.
It is the second phase of a project that began earlier this summer. U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone (D-6th Dist.) said the work done earlier was considered a higher priority.
The total cost of the project is $52 million, according to Jason Shea, a project manager for the Army Corps. The first phase cost $31.5 million, while the second phase will cost $20.5 million.
That burden is split between the federal, state and local levels. The federal government pays for 65% of the project. The remaining 35% will be shared, with the state paying three-quarters of that amount and local authorities assuming the rest.
In total, the project brings 2.7 million cubic yards of new sand onto the beaches in the three towns. The first phase used 1.7 million cubic yards, and the second round is slated to add another million cubic yards.
In this phase, beaches will be enlarged in Long Branch from South Broadway to Joline Avenue, extending partially into Seven Presidents Park. In Monmouth Beach, sand will be added from Cottage Road north, reaching to Garden Way in Sea Bright. And the rest of the work will be done in Sea Bright between Tradewinds Lane and Center Street.
Beach replenishment is viewed by local leaders as an economic lifeline, ensuring tourists continue to visit the area to spend time on large, sandy beaches. The replenishment work is also touted as critical to protecting the towns from future storm damage, a threat amplified by climate change.
As much as the beach replenishment has certainly helped the tourism its nice to have a wide beach that people can come and sit on and swim thats not why we do it," Pallone said Monday while speaking on the Long Branch boardwalk. "The reason we do it is because whenever theres a disaster declaration, and the federal government comes in, they have to spend millions and millions of dollars putting back the boardwalk, the infrastructure, the streets, the utilities.
Monmouth Beach Mayor David Stickle described the project as critical infrastructure" for his borough.
Monmouth Beach is between an ocean and a river. We get a lot of high tides," he said. The town is way better off and way safer with this project.
Beach replenishment work was last done in the area following Superstorm Sandy. Typically, sand needs to be added to the 21-mile stretch of beach from Sea Bright to Manasquan every six years to keep up with erosion, Shea said.
Climate change could speed up that cycle, requiring the expensive replenishment work to be done more frequently. Shea said the Army Corps is prepared to begin a study of how beach replenishment needs will change in Monmouth County in coming decades, but the agency is waiting for funding.
When we say six years, it could be an area that goes for 12 years, and another area that has to be done after one or two years, Pallone said. But it is true that as we have more frequent storms, it may have to be done more frequently. And I do believe that these frequent storms are linked to climate change.
As of 2015, more than $1 billion had been spent on beach replenishment work in New Jersey over a three-decade span.
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection is developing a state climate resiliency plan, which is expected to give guidelines for how Shore communities should adapt to a future of higher sea levels, stronger storms and more frequent flooding. That plan was originally due this month, but its publication has been delayed by the coronavirus pandemic.
Bill Dixon, the director of the DEPs Division of Coastal Engineering, said continued beach replenishment is expected to be a key part of the state plan. But he added that other resiliency strategies, like the restoration of dunes and wetlands, will also be important.
Its going to include an array of alternatives, and some may work in some areas and some may work in others," Dixon said. "But theres going to have to be a lot of hard decisions that have to be made between the state, counties and towns on how to adapt to future climate change.
In Congress, Pallone is sponsoring the Living Shorelines Act, which would give federal funding to cities and towns that want to develop natural coastal protections like dunes, wetlands and oyster reefs. That bill has been passed by the House of Representatives, and is awaiting consideration in the Senate.
This only passed the House. Ive got to get past the Senate, and theres that problem called [U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky]. But well see after Nov. 3, Pallone said, referring to the upcoming election. Maybe we wont have that problem anymore.
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Michael Sol Warren may be reached at mwarren@njadvancemedia.com.
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New phase of $52M Jersey Shore beach replenishment project starts this week in 3 towns - NJ.com