 |
|
New Jersey Ratings
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Indicator Type |
|
Info |
|
Status |
|
|
|
|
|
Beach Access |
|
8
|
|
4 |
|
|
|
|
|
Water Quality |
|
7
|
|
5 |
|
|
|
|
|
Beach Erosion |
|
8
|
|
- |
|
|
|
|
|
Erosion Response |
|
- |
|
4
|
|
|
|
|
|
Beach Fill |
|
7
|
|
- |
|
|
|
|
|
Shoreline Structures |
|
8
|
|
2 |
|
|
|
|
|
Beach Ecology |
|
5
|
|
- |
|
|
|
|
|
Surfing Areas |
|
3
|
|
5 |
|
|
|
|
|
Website |
|
8
|
|
- |
|
|
|
|
|
New Jersey Beach Fill
Policies
According to the 2001 Assessment, the NJDEP has embarked on a large-scale,
statewide beach fill program in conjunction with the US ACOE. New Jersey
has continued to appropriate funds to support this program and to provide
the non-federal matching share of these large-scale federal beach fill projects.
Current annual appropriations for this beach fill program amount to $25 million.
This program has resulted in significant restoration of beaches along the
New Jersey oceanfront. As a component of these projects, the NJDEP has required
the construction, restoration, and/or enhancement of dunes adjacent to these
beaches.
While the fill projects have been successful in reestablishing eroded beaches,
the dune restoration/enhancement program has met with limited success. In
some oceanfront communities, residents are becoming increasingly concerned
about the potential negative impact of newly created dunes on ocean views
and associated property values. This clearly illustrates the limited public
understanding of coastal hazards and hazard mitigation, and the apparent
attitude in many coastal communities that property values are more important
than public safety.
In an interesting court case decided in August 2005, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled that a sand berm and shrubs constructed on the beach in Loch Arbor by a private property owner constituted a "fence" and therefore had to be removed (or at least reduced in height) because a there was both a local zoning law and a restrictive covenant on the property that limited fence heights to six and four feet, respectively. The mayor of Loch Arbor expressed concern that removal of the berm might result in damage to properties during storms.
Inventory
DEP's Coastal Engineering Web page contains information on beach fill projects,
shoreline structures, and also has related coastal links.
The Bureau of Coastal Engineering, in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers, provides beach fill and re-fill projects for the purpose of
restoring New Jersey's beaches along our coastline. Beach fill projects consist
of the initial placement of sand along a beach that has experienced erosion.
Sources of sand for such projects can include a local source such as from
a neighboring beach or sandbar, a dredged source such as a nearby inlet or
waterway, an inland source such as a mining quarry, or, as used most commonly
in large-scale projects, an offshore source such as a borrow site along the
ocean bottom. This sand can be brought in with trucks or barges, hydraulically
pumped or any combination of the above, and is then spread evenly along the
beach using a common dozer. This completes the initial beach fill phase.
As restored beaches undergo erosion, they must be maintained through beach
re-fill. The re-fill process consists of restoring the beach to initial conditions
and usually has less time and cost associated with the project when compared
to the initial fill. The time between re-fill projects, called the re-fill
cycle, is dependent upon the severity of annual erosion of the beach and
is usually several years.
Depending on the purpose and location of the project, funding may be available
from several sources. For federal beach fill projects, the federal government
contributes 65% of the project cost while the remaining 35% is divided into
a cost-share, with the state contributing 75% and the local governments contributing
the remaining 25%. Non-federal beach fill projects are funded through a state/local
cost-share, with the state contributing 75% and the local governments contributing
25%.
As of the end of 2008, more than $800 million in state and federal taxpayer dollars had been spent on beach fill projects in New Jersey over the previous two decades.
Since 1989, an estimated $511 million in federal shore protection funds has been appropriated. Nothwithstanding post-hurricane repair dollars, New Jersey has received more federal dollars -- approximately $325 million -- than any other state between the fiscal years 1995 and 2008.
Since 1994, the state has dedicated about $321 million through a Shore Protection Fund that goes toward beach restoration. Stable funding for state-sponsored shore protection projects was increased
to $25 million annually in 1999 as part of an amendment to the real estate
transfer tax. This legislation helps to ensure the funding needed
annually to continue the beach fill program and protect New Jersey's coastal
communities as well as the state's vital tourism industry.
Current Federal and State beach fill and shoreline structure projects in New Jersey are listed here.
The New Jersey Beach Fill program was first authorized by the River and Harbor
Act of July 3, 1958, and consisted of nourishing 21 miles of shoreline from
the Town of Sea Bright to the Manasquan Inlet in Monmouth County, New Jersey.
The Sandy Hook to Barnegat Inlet project is the largest beach fill project
ever undertaken by the Corps of Engineers, and is the largest beach fill
project (in terms of volume) in the world. The project is intended to provide
beach restoration and storm damage protection to the highly populated communities
and infrastructure located along the New Jersey shoreline, which was previously
protected only by a seawall or eroded sections of beach. Protection is provided
by constructing a 100-foot wide beach berm at an elevation of 10 feet above
mean low water (MLW). Construction also consists of notching existing stone
groins and outfall pipe extensions. This provides
for littoral drift, which is the natural tendency of the ocean currents to
flow north-south or south-north along the beachfront. This littoral drift
causes sediment to travel back and forth with these currents, allowing the
natural cycle of sand migration to continue relatively unimpeded. The combination
of littoral (or longshore) drift as well as cross shore transport (landward
and seaward) together are a large part of the sand migration cycle which
has been impeded by many shore protection structures in New Jersey.
The project includes periodic fill of
the restored beaches on a 6-year cycle for a period 50 years from the start
of initial construction. According to the Army Corps of Engineers, $195 million has been spent in the past 20 years on beach fill projects along this stretch of beach.
The project area consists of two sections:
- Section I - Which extends for 12 miles from Sea Bright to Ocean Township.
Section I is separated into four construction contracts.
- Section II - Which reaches 9 miles from Asbury Park south to the Manasquan
Inlet. Section II is divided into two contracts.
The non-Federal sponsor for the project is the State of New Jersey Department
of Environmental Protection, who is responsible for acquiring all lands,
easements, and rights-of-way and providing 35% of the total costs of the
project.
The 50-year Army Corps program in Monmouth County is expected to cost $800 million. So far, 22 million cubic yards of sand has been pumped over 18 miles of beach.
More information on this project is available at the Army Corps of Engineers,
New York District Web sites: http://www.nan.usace.army.mil/project/newjers/factsh/pdf/barneg.pdf and
http://www.nan.usace.army.mil/business/prjlinks/coastal/sandyhok/index.htm
The Final Report for The Army Corps of Engineers New York District's Biological Monitoring Program for the Atlantic Coast of New Jersey, Sea Bright to Manasquan Inlet, Beach Erosion Project is now available. The report describes results of during-construction (1997) and first- and second-year post-construction (1998, 1999, & 2000) studies as well as comparisons with the pre-construction
results (1994-1996).
Information on this and other New Jersey "shore protection" projects can
be found at http://www.nan.usace.army.mil/project/newjers/index.htm
This project has not been without controversy, however. Placement of massive
amounts of sand has "buried" several surfing spots in the area. When an additional
re-fill project was proposed in 2001, members of Surfrider's Jersey Shore
Chapter, along with scientists from Surfrider's Environmental Issues Team
and representatives of Surfers Environmental Alliance (SEA) became concerned
that the "Big Cove" surfing area in Sandy Hook would be destroyed or severely
altered. There was also a belief among these groups that re-fill in this
particular location was not necessary to protect a park access road, since
sand was naturally accumulating in this area. The National Park Service ultimately
agreed with Surfrider and SEA that the fill project at Big Cove was not necessary.
A description of this issue can be found at:
http://www.surfrider.org/makingwaves/makingwaves18-3/4-5_8.pdf
The Office of Coastal Planning contracted a study to put together comprehensive
information on fill projects. The information was available as an unverified
GIS map and as a report. Many of the recorded projects washed away, so there
was no "polygon" delineating the project, just a reference to where it took
place, the number of cubic yards of fill, and its purpose. The Bureau of
Coastal Engineering has more in-depth information but it is not available
to the public or in a GIS format.
New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Bradley
M. Campbell announced in December 2003 the commitment of $34.5 million in
state funding to protect the Jersey shore from erosion and severe coastal
damage during major storms. U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg announced $30.5
million in federal funding to assist in shore protection and enhancement
projects at several locations including Raritan Bay, Barnegat Inlet, Sandy
Hook and the Shrewsbury, Manasquan, and Shark Rivers (see table below).
A portion of the state funding will be directed to coastal municipalities
to aid shore stabilization projects, such as beach fills, bulkhead replacements
and jetty construction.
A periodic "re-fill" project began in December 2008 in Long Branch, Monmouth County. Beaches between Cedar and Howland Avenues, which were part of an extensive shore protection project in 1994, are scheduled to receive 700,000 cubic yards of sand at a cost of $9.34 million. Surfrider Foundation went to federal court in November 2008 to try to delay the project until authorities could test the sand for pollutants and contaminants. U.S. District Judge Mary L. Cooper denied Surfrider's motion for a preliminary injunction. Surfrider has noted that the sand being pumped from the ocean floor near Sandy Hook and transported to Long Branch is located near several sources of pollution and waste water, including outfall from New York Harbor.
The project is noteworthy because it included an experimental design championed by the Surfers Environmental Alliance and Surfrider Foundation to help maintain surfing opportunities there. The Long Branch project includes a feature that may add to the creation of offshore sandbars while maintaining the project's storm damage reduction qualities, and allow sand to flow north in currents, giving the beach a varied shoreline shape and possibly some near-shore sand bars. Unfortunately, the "as-built" shoreline did not have nearly as pronounced a "sand point" as designed, so the wave enhancement appears to be minimal, with the waves breaking very close to shore.
The corps' New York District has teamed with the Stevens Institute of Technology and NJDEP to monitor the ocean and shoreline. Students and faculty from Stevens will look at several aspects of the renourished beach over the course of a year to track erosion, the creation of sandbars, wave dynamics and how recreational use is affected.
DEP funded research conducted by the Richard Stockton Coastal Research Center
to record the effects of major beach restoration projects undertaken by federal,
state, and local partners. Stockton recently completed a 15-year study that
also reviewed beach changes from 1986 through the fall of 2002. The research
shows beach restoration projects, when completed and maintained can successfully
stabilize short-term erosion and highlighted the importance of beach replenishment
projects and New Jersey's shore economy and tourism. The study states that
22% of the $31 billion ($6.82 billion) spent on tourism related recreational
activities is generated from direct beach or waterfront activities.
Shore protection projects are funded through either a federal-state-local
cost share or a state-local cost share, depending on the project. Design
and real estate acquisition costs are the responsibility of the local sponsor.
State-owned shore protection structures are designed, constructed and maintained
through the DEP Bureau of Coastal Engineering. The Bureau of Coastal Engineering,
in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, provides beach fill
and re-fill projects for the purpose of restoring New Jersey's beaches.
Below is a listing of projects.
| Municipality |
Total |
State Share |
Local Share |
| Beachwood |
$66,667 |
$50,000 |
$16,667 |
| Beachwood |
$373,867 |
$280,400 |
$93,467 |
| Brooklawn |
$425,000 |
$318,750 |
$106,250 |
| Cape May Point |
$400,000 |
$300,000 |
$100,000 |
| Downe Twp. |
$100,000 |
$75,000 |
$25,000 |
| Jersey City |
$666,667 |
$500,000 |
$166,667 |
| Longport |
$1,100,000 |
$825,000 |
$275,000 |
| Monmouth County Park System |
$333,333 |
$250,000 |
$83,333 |
| North Wildwood |
$1,333,333 |
$1,000,000 |
$333,333 |
| North Wildwood |
$3,333,333 |
$2,500,000 |
$833,333 |
| Pennsville |
$1,000,000 |
$750,000 |
$250,000 |
| Rumson |
$234,667 |
$176,000 |
$58,667 |
| Seaside Heights |
$300,000 |
$225,000 |
$75,000 |
| Stone Harbor |
$1,000,000 |
$750,000 |
$250,000 |
| West Wildwood |
$1,626,667 |
$1,220,000 |
$406,667 |
| Wildwood |
$1,066,667 |
$800,000 |
$266,667 |
| Wildwood Crest |
$1,866,667 |
$1,400,000 |
$466,667 |
| |
$15,226,867 |
$11,420,150 |
$3,806,717 |
| Previous Fiscal Years Carry-Overs |
| Keyport Bulkhead (FY 2000) |
$2,150,000 |
$1,612,500 |
$537,500 |
| Westville Stabilization (FY2001) |
$800,000 |
$600,000 |
$200,000 |
| Sea Breeze Rip-Rap (FY 2001) |
$1,000,000 |
$750,000 |
$250,000 |
| DOD Sea Girt Bulkhead (FY 2003) |
$1,000,000 |
$1,000,000 |
|
| Loch Arbour/ Deal Lake Bulkhead (FY 2003) |
$1,333,333 |
$1,000,000 |
$333,333 |
| Fletcher Lake (FY 2003) |
$1,000,000 |
$750,000 |
$250,000 |
| Pleasantville 5% Reimbursement (FY 2002) |
$113,333 |
$85,000 |
$28,333 |
| Perth Amboy 5% Reimbursement (FY 2002) |
$150,000 |
$112,500 |
$37,500 |
| Stockton State College (FY 2003) |
$500,000 |
$500,000 |
|
| Total |
$8,046,667 |
$6,410,000 |
$1,636,667 |
| US Army Corps of Engineers Projects |
| New York District |
Federal |
State |
Local |
| Belmar to Manasquan Beachfill |
$4,333,333 |
$1,750,000 |
$583,333 |
| Port Monmouth
Feasibility & PED |
$700,000 |
$700,000 |
$0 |
| Keansburg Feasibility Study |
$100,000 |
$100,000 |
$0 |
| Total |
$5,133,333 |
$2,550,000 |
$583,333 |
| |
| Philadelphia District |
|
|
|
| Absecon Island Beachfill |
$19,500,000 |
$7,875,000 |
$2,525,000 |
| Great Egg to Townsends (Strathmere, Whale Beach) |
$150,000 |
$150,000 |
$0 |
| NJ Alternative Fill Feasibility Study |
$300,000 |
$300,000 |
$0 |
| Hereford to Cape May Inlet Feasibility Study |
$100,000 |
$100,000 |
$0 |
| Manasquan Inlet to Barnegat Inlet |
$300,000 |
$100,000 |
$0 |
| Townsends Inlet-Cape May Int Beachfill/Seawall |
$12,380,951 |
$5,000,000 |
$1,666,666 |
| Cape May City Beachfill |
$100,000 |
$100,000 |
$0 |
| Long Beach Island Beachfill |
$300,000 |
$100,000 |
$0 |
| Delaware Bay/Reeds Beach/Pierces Pt |
$900,000 |
$300,000 |
$0 |
| Lower Cape May Meadows |
$185,715 |
$100,000 |
$0 |
| Total |
$34,216,666 |
$14,125,000 |
$4,191,666 |
| US Army Corps Grand Total |
$60,799,998 |
|
|
| State Share Grand Total |
|
$34,505,150 |
|
| Local Share Grand Total |
|
|
$10,218,383 |
Two seawalls are being constructed to protect the inlets at the north ends of Avalon and North Wildwood. The House approved more than $12.6 million for this project in 2004. Construction began in August 2004 and was expected to last between 18 and 24 months. The seawall construction is part of a larger project that includes the placement of 4.6 million cubic yards of beach fill and dune reconstruction on the ocean fronts of Avalon and Stone Harbor (already completed) and the periodic re-fill on these beaches approximately every three years.
Grant funding in the amount of $75,000 to re-fill a small section of beach at Union Beach was approved by the DEP in late 2004. Beach fill projects that have reportedly been funded by the U.S. Congress are Leonardo beach design at $224,000, Highlands and Keyport beach projects at $200,000 each and $175,000 for beach fill at spots along the Raritan-Sandy Hook shoreline.
An article in The Press of Atlantic City by Richard Degener on March 22, 2005 illustrates the importance of considering beach ecology before implementing beach dredge and fill projects. Below are slightly edited excerpts from that article:
Piping plovers have been called the most endangered bird on the New Jersey shore. They may also be the most expensive, based upon tentative settlent of a case in Stone Harbor, New Jersey, where the borough was forced to remove dredge spoils from the beach at an estimated cost of $3 million. The $3 million got the spoils off piping plover habitat that produced four nests last year.
That works out to $750,000 per plover nest. Plovers set up nine nests on the area where the dredge spoils were removed, but only four of the nests produced young. The bad news: Only one plover fledged. That means it was a $3 million bird.
To put it in perspective, piping plovers are only deemed to be worth $22,000 each when they are killed by an oil spill. But another perspective worth considering is that the case was not just about piping plovers, although they got all the publicity. The area also includes large colonies of least terns and black skimmers, which are both endangered species in New Jersey.
There are also about 1,000 common terns on the beach. This is a "species of concern," which is a step below being listed as threatened. A threatened species is the step below being listed as endangered.
The case began when Stone Harbor deposited backbay dredge spoils on Stone Harbor Point, and the federal government, worried about impacts on plovers, filed suit giving the borough a March 31, 2003, deadline to remove the materials. Stone Harbor agreed in court to remove 80,000 cubic yards of material. Some of the spoils were moved to a nearby backbay location, Sedge Island, but former Lower Township Mayor Larry Starner became irate upon hearing in December 2003 that 20,000 cubic yards were to be trucked to Garden State's yard in the township's Rio Grande section. Starner was worried the spoils could pollute the groundwater, though they had tested below contaminant thresholds.
Before long the lawsuits were flying. Lower Township passed a dredge-spoils ordinance that was struck down by a judge in June 2004 in a case that made it clear the state controls dredge spoils.
Stronger than expected waves, tides and currents during the 2004-2005 Winter and during Spring 2005 caused substantial erosion along portions of a $24 million beach fill project at Ventnor. Cliffs were cut into new dunes which had been constructed along the beach. Then when the city used bulldozers to smooth out the affected areas, they flattened some dunes. This caused the New Jersey DEP to order a stop to the work, based on concerns that federal dune protection laws may have been violated.
In 2005 the Army Corps began a $500,000 beach fill project at the south end of Harvey Cedars.
A large beach fill project at Long Beach Island secured $5.67 million in federal funding in November 2005. The project also has $3 million in state funding and approximately $400,000 each from Ocean County and local municipalities. Congress also allocated $3 million for periodic re-fill of previously widened beaches in Monmouth County and construction funds for northern Ocean County beaches. In total, New Jersey is slated to receive $32.7 million for beach projects as part of the 2006 Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act, more than any other state.
Two controversial issues associated with the Long Beach Island project are the easements that must be granted by some 800 oceanfront property owners to provide public access points every quarter mile along the beach before the Army Corps of Engineers can begin work and the concerns of the Jersey Shore Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation regarding impacts of the project to surfing areas. The cities involved may have to use eminent domain to acquire the property for the easements if the property owners don't voluntarily grant them. Another option being explored by the borough of Ship Bottom is the possibility of doing a land swap with homeowners. The homeowners would be granted developable land behind the bulkhead in exchange for giving up a portion of the beach in front of the dune. The project gained added urgency in early 2006 when storm waves undermined two multimillion-dollar homes. As of the end of 2008, implementation of the project in the towns of Harvey Cedars, Ship Bottom, Beach Haven and Long Beach Township was still stalled due to an inability to secure easements from property owners granting the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the state DEP access to their property. In November 2008 a state appeals court rejected the DEP's 24-hour beach access rules and regulations of bathroom and parking locations. The ruling also said that the DEP alone does not have the authority to withhold shore protection funds if municipalities do not provide additional parking spaces or restrooms close to the beach.
For the surfing impacts, the Jersey Shore Chapter completed a mapping project along Long Beach Island and requested modifications of the project in about a dozen locations to preserve surfing resources.
As mentioned above, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) originally requiried municipalities to provide public restrooms every quarter-mile for the length of the island as a condition of the project. The DEP also mandated that Long Beach Township provide more public parking in the exclusive Loveladies and North Beach sections of town.
The project will create a 17-mile-long berm, 125-feet wide and as high as 30 feet at the crest, along the beach. Initial construction will require 7.5 million cubic yards of sand, a half-million feet of sand fencing and 350 acres of dune grasses.
In January 2009 it was announced that Strathmere was getting an $8 million beach fill to pump sand onto Ludlam Island, the strand shared by Strathmere and Sea Isle City. Sand will be pumped from Seaview Avenue south through Whale Beach. As a project condition, Upper Township secured easements from dozens of property owners and is taking a few holdouts to court to seize the beachfront lots through eminent domain to satisfy NJDEP's requirement to ensure public access to the beaches. The township is paying 25 percent of the total project cost. Sea Isle City plans to pump 400,000 cubic yards of sand on beaches from First to 15th streets and from 42nd to 52nd streets as part of the same dredging project. The stretch from First to 15th streets are where the city previously installed geotubes to protect Ocean Drive. The last state beach project in Sea Isle City was a $4.2 million beach fill on the city's south end in 1999.
Also in January 2009, a $4.5 million beach fill project in Cape May was announced. The project will pump 70,000 cubic yards of sand from the borough to Second Avenue. Interestingly, the project also includes removing 30,000 cubic yards of sand from beaches off Coral and Whilldin avenues because a previous project pushed the beachfront too close to offshore concrete "reefs" and resulted in those beches being closed to swimmers. Another aspect of the project is the excavation of a pond in the meadows behind the strand that will be used by piping plovers.
In September 2008 Senator Frank Lautenberg called on the Army Corps of Engineers to immediately investigate the rise in spinal cord injuries to Cape May beachgoers. During the summer of 2008, officials in Cape May and various news stories, including the Press of Atlantic City and the Philadelphia Inquirer, reported 17 cases of injuries. Cape May City also began a public education campaign to raise awareness of the problem in August 2008.
“As you may know, these injuries are sustained by swimmers and surfers who are crashing into the unusually shallow water near the shoreline,” Lautenberg said in the letter. “We need to address this safety issue to ensure the well-being of beachgoers at the Jersey Shore.”
The Jersey Shore Partnership Web site provides some information on beach fill
in New Jersey.
Information on beach fill in New Jersey is also available through Western Carolina University's
Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines. A summary documents 263 projects
dating from 1936 through 2003, with a total cost of approximately $545 million.
Background information and a database with details on individual projects by state can be found at http://psds.wcu.edu/1038.asp
The beach at Cape May was re-filled 10 times between 1962 and 1995, at a
total cost of $24,669,771. Cape May was named one of the top "restored beaches" in the nation by the American Shore and Beach Preservation Association (ASBPA) in 2005. On the other hand, the "re-fill" conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers during the winter of 2004-2005 generated a litany of complaints from the public at a meeting in July 2005. The complaints included the fact that excessive sand moved the beaches at Coral and Whilldin Avenues too close to offshore submerged concrete reefs, causing the closure of these beaches for safety reasons. Other complaints concerned a steeper drop-off into deep water and the presence of rocks in the new beach sand.
Ocean City's beach was re-filled 22 times between
1952 and 1995 at a total cost of more than $83,104,502. The 1982 fill in
Ocean City cost $2.5 million but lasted only two and a half months.
The Fiscal Year 2010 Civil Works Budget for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers provides $5.125 billion for water resources projects in the areas of commercial navigation, flood and coastal storm damage reduction, and aquatic ecosystem restoration. A new budget activity this year is Response to Climate Change at Corps Projects, to assess broadly how and where climate change may affect the management of Civil Works projects and to identify options such as changes in operation or other modifications in response to climate change. This budget lists proposed projects by state.
The EPA's global warming impacts Web site notes that estimates of the cost
of protecting Long Beach Island with seawalls and more sand from a 1 to 3
foot increase in sea level over the next century are $100 million-$500 million.
These costs could begin to accrue soon and continue to be incurred throughout
the next century.
http://yosemite.epa.gov/oar/globalwarming.nsf/content/us-newjersey.html
NOAA's Coastal Services Center has developed a Web site that offers information on all aspects of beach fill. The new Web resource, Beach Nourishment: A Guide for Local Governments, was developed to guide state and local organizations to make informed decisions about fill. The Web site includes descriptions of coastal geological and ecological processes, discussions of legal and regulatory requirements, information on federal project cost sharing, and a professional dialogue about the pros and cons of fill.
Contacthttp://www.nj.gov/cgi-bin/dep/contactdep.pl
|