USACE Completes Restoration Projects Along New Jersey Coast

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has completed its post-Superstorm Sandy beach repair and restoration projects along the Monmouth County coastline prior to the Fourth of July kickoff of the summer tourism season.

The completion of sand fill in Long Branch by USACE’s New York District last week returns previously constructed beaches damaged by Sandy from Sandy Hook to Manasquan to their original protection design, dating back to their original construction from 1994 to 2001.

Sand placement operations at all of the U.S. Army Corps’ restoration projects in New Jersey, which covered approximately 45 miles of coastline and also included several projects on Long Beach Island and the southern coast of the state, conducted by USACE’s Philadelphia District, are now complete.

“These beaches have been repaired and restored to their original design standard, not just to pre-Sandy conditions, and will offer enhanced protection for future storms,” Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Bob Martin said. “We’re grateful for the expeditious work of the Army Corps of Engineers, particularly as we start another great beach season. We also look forward to the start of other upcoming Army Corps coastal and flood projects which will make New Jersey more resilient along our entire coastline and other waterways.”

“From the beginning this has been a team effort,” said Brig. Gen. Kent D. Savre, the Commanding General of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers North Atlantic Division. “Our beaches are a critical resource for our Nation, and we’re thankful to have such great partners working with us since ‘Day 1’ to reduce the risk of future storm events to our coastline communities.”

Authorized by the federal Flood Control and Coastal Emergencies (FCCE) Act and the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013, the Army Corps carried out its post-Sandy coastal restoration work in Monmouth County, and also restored several major beach areas in Ocean, Atlantic and Cape May counties at a cost of $345 million, which was all federally funded.

These authorities allowed the Corps to not only replace sand lost during Superstorm Sandy, but to restore previously constructed beach projects back to their original design – meaning even more sand was placed, creating larger and wider beaches than many areas have seen in years that results in greater coastal storm risk management.

In New Jersey, USACE’s New York District placed more than 7.9 million cubic yards of sand from Sandy Hook to Manasquan. In addition to the recently finished Long Branch section of the project, restoration work was already completed in Sea Bright and Monmouth Beach last November and from Asbury Park to Avon and Belmar to Manasquan in May.

The New York District also completed the placement of 875,000 cubic yards of sand in Keansburg, along Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook Bay, earlier this month, restoring the previously constructed dune and beach berm system there.

USACE’s Philadelphia District had completed the beach fill portions of six repair and restoration projects in February. Those efforts saw approximately 10 million cubic yards of sand placed on the beaches of Harvey Cedars, Surf City and Brant Beach on Long Beach Island, Atlantic City and Ventnor on Absecon Island, Brigantine Island, Ocean City, Avalon and Stone Harbor on 7-Mile Island, and Cape May City.

The completion of these post-Superstorm Sandy beach repair and restoration projects along the New Jersey coast precedes 11 new planned coastal and flood protection projects that are now under design and will get underway later this year and through 2016 at an estimated cost of $1.4 billion. Those projects will help create an engineered, comprehensive shore protection system along the Atlantic coast, while also bolstering protections on the Delaware Bay coast, Raritan Bay, Sandy Hook Bay and tidal portions of the South River and the Passaic River.

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Press Release, June 27, 2014