Originally Posted by
Erock
Good points, sorry I missed this thread.
However, beach renourishment down here in SENC is not as large in scope as they do in the Northeast. Most of our renourishment is a byproduct of inlet dredging, they don't put the sand in the same place every time.
Current dredging projects in SENC:
-New Topsail inlet: Dredged out at least 2 times every year, but usually many more than that. The CG moves the channel buoys almost weekly because the inlet moves so much. Most of the time they put the sand on the S. end of Topsail but they also will just put the sand on one of the ICW spoil islands.
-Mason's Inlet: Dredged out every two years no to maintain a navigable channel but to maintain the current position of the inlet. Right now they are pumping the sand on the S. end of Figure 8, but sometimes they will just put it on a spoil island.
-Masonboro Inlet & ICW intersection: Every other year or so, they do a survey twice a year to keep an eye on shoaling. No dredging going on right now, but they usually pump the sand onto WB and it usually doesn't amount to anything more than a small addition to the beach.
-CB Inlet: Like New Topsail Inlet, it gets dredged at least twice a year and the CG moves the channel markers on a weekly basis. This year they are doing a major dredging, so they are putting the sand on the N. end of CB. Fun fact: CB Inlet is man-made, there was never an inlet there until they made Snow's Cut to connect the ICW to the Cape Fear River and they realized they needed to put in an inlet to handle all the extra water moving through. There were some very long-lasting effects I will get into in a minute.
-Kure Beach: They haven't renourished KB in a long time, so they are doing something in scope closer to what folks in the NE see--lots of new beach. They started renourishing from just North of The Riggings and I'm not too sure how far North they are going. This one is rubbing me the wrong way because I fear it will ruin one, maybe two of our classic breaks down there--but we'll have to wait and see. This is also a different kind of dredging: They are using a "Hopper" dredge that sucks up sand deposits from a little over 1 mile offshore of Masonboro, brings it over to a pump "station" about 300 yards offshore then pumps it to the beach--kinda cool to watch.
Now, for the effects. Keep in mind the sand eventually moves South in our area (littoral drift I believe it's called):
-Surf: Usually minimal and actually improves many of the standard beach breaks. What RobG mentioned with the deep sloughs and then shallow sandbars are how our beaches are under "normal" conditions. Renourishment pushes the beach farther into deeper water, so the waves break with more punch because they aren't dragging on the bottom so much before breaking. As I said, KB is going to be an experiment worth observing because it's been so long since the last time they renourished it. I still think it's going to ruin a couple great spots South of there, though.
-Fishing: It ruins surf and nearshore fishing for at least a year... period. They are burying the normal shoreline ecology underneath tons of sand... it's horrible. Not to mention whatever they are destroying while they are dredging. Now is the time to go look for Megaladon teeth, though.
-Other Inlets/Wetlands: People who haven't been around here for more than a decade don't realize we have lost a couple smaller inlets in SENC as a direct result of renourishment. This has hurt some vital wetlands in our area because they don't flush like they should with the tide. They are still healthy.... just not as healthy as they could be or were historically. Here they are:
-John's Creek: Most people don't know that Masonboro used to be two different islands separated by this small inlet on the Southern portion of the island. Those who have kayaked to Mase from the Trails End boat ramp know where it used to be--thinnest part of the island back in those thousands of acres of marsh flats. This inlet filled in as a result of the jetties being constructed on Masonboro inlet back in the day--before my time, based on my grandfather and father's accounts.
-Corncake Inlet: This is the inlet that used to separate the South end of Ft. Fisher from Bald Head Island. It used to be connected to the large marsh flats behind that area known as "Buzzard's Bay." The water quality in BB has taken a pretty serious hit since the inlet filled in: sometime in the early 2000's. My dad and I used to surf fish that place on the regular, really sad to see it go. It eventually filled in due to increased renourishment efforts on CB and KB, addition of a second cove at Ft. Fisher and stabilization/renourishment efforts on Bald Head. Doesn't matter now, though: you can't even get there anymore unless you feel like walking for miles through a nature preserve. Andrewk would love this: They created a nature preserve on land that didn't used to exist and only exists because of human engineering but now they won't let you in the area unless you are below the high tide mark... or unless you are a park ranger driving around in your 4x4 truck as fast as you can murdering "invasive species" that are only there as a result of engineering in the first place... it's a freaking anti-access environmentalist's dream.... but I digress.
Anyway, that's my observation of it. We need to get a good swell again to see what it actually does anyway....
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