Replenish Beach Advocates Group (RBAG*)

*(We thought about calling ourselves the "Real Beach Advocates Group" - and were also tempted to call ourselves the "Cal Coastal Beach, Bluff, & Surfer Advocacy Foundation Commission", but the acronym isn't any good, and we wouldn't want to offend those that like to take sides and just be against things)    :)

Solana Beach - Fletcher Cove

Sand Replenishment:

We Are All In Agreement This Is The Solution, Most Beaches North Of San Diego Are Replenished Every Year - So Why Isn't It Getting Done In Solana Beach!

Imperial Beach  has a sand replenishment program!  Click here to see the article.  So why are they so far ahead of us?  

Everyone agrees that having nice beaches achieves all objectives:  Enjoyment for beach-goers (relaxing, swimming, walking, better surfing, tourism, etc.), and protection for the bluffs.  And, isn't it a little bit embarrassing that Solana "Beach" has hardly any beaches?

• A hundred years ago, the sand for the ocean beaches was brought to the coast by the rivers from inland.
• But dams, dikes, and bridges interrupted that natural sand replenishment.
  
• The ocean restores sand in the summer, but removes it in the winter.
• In bad winters, especially with an El Nino effect, the ocean takes away more sand than it replenishes.
  
• Very little sand replenishment comes from bluffs degrading.  The bluff issue is totally separate (except that having beaches would greatly help protect the bluffs from erosion and decrease the need for sea walls!).
  
• As a result of all of the above, most of the "urban" beaches in California are man-made (the sand replenished every year! - go to link below).
  
• San Diego was apparently very fortunate in past years (prior to 1995) that there was enough sand on the beaches and the ocean restored enough sand for the summers.
• But the El Nino in 1995 took a lot of sand away from all of the beaches in California that nature has not restored.
• So, San Diego needs to wake up and do sand replenishment every year just like everywhere else in California!
  
• But why is San Diego so backward in getting this done?  Why does everyone just throw up their hands and say it is so expensive?  What are you doing about getting sand on our beaches?

Click here for information about sand replenishment and other beaches that are replenished.

Extremists in Solana Beach against sand replenishment?

The Corp of Engineers actually wants to do a project for sand replenishment and sand retention in Solana Beach, but there are extremists that objected!  The Corp was shocked and, hey, they have limited resources and have plenty of projects for communities that welcome them.  Please contact the City council and tell them we want this project, regardless of the extremists

How stupid do they think people are?

Bluff erosion primary source, studies show

By Terry Rodgers
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

October 13, 2005

UCSD scientists have completed two studies showing that cliff erosion produces far more sand for local beaches than previously estimated.

A six-year study by engineering professor Scott Ashford and graduate student Adam Young found that bluff erosion accounted for 68 percent of the fresh sand that nature provides to the county's eroding beaches.

(appropriately, the type face of this article was "Comic Sans")

Duh - Before the dams existed, the rivers provided 90% of the sand for beaches.  Now, the beaches get a fraction of the sand they did, and obviously not enough to maintain them.  So, if the beaches only get 10% of the sand they used to, then maybe 68% of the little sand they now get is from bluff erosion (which would be only 6.8% of the sand the beaches used to get and need).  The point is, every study in the world says that bluff erosion contributes a very small amount of sand to beaches, and even this study confirms it (even though they twisted it to get headlines).

Come on people!  Beaches need sand replenishment to replace what used to come from the rivers!  Every study confirms this and practically all the beaches in the world get it!

Next stupid debate:  Seawalls (click here).

(Revised 4/8/06)

For any comments on this, please e-mail oursolanabeach@jumpingdolphins.com