MARCH 1, 2018

– Pat Dowling, North Myrtle Beach Public Information

 

The City of North Myrtle Beach is nearing completion of the permitted dune restoration project from 45th Avenue South to 48th Avenue South and from 42nd Avenue North to 55th Avenue North.

Sand came from the dredging spoils basin located on Little River Neck Road where the Cherry Grove dredging project sand was deposited. Prior to dredging the canals, sand located in the canals was tested and found to be compatible with existing dune and beach sand. 

The City must remove all of the sand from the spoils basin; since some sand remains in the basin, the City has opted to continue to utilize the remaining sand for more dune restoration and has applied to the South Carolina Department of Health & Environmental Control’s Office of Ocean & Coastal Resource Management (OCRM) for authorization to place sand in other North Myrtle Beach shoreline areas.

The process

Street trucks hauled sand from the spoils basin to the beach where off-road vehicles carried the sand along the beach to the dune line. From there, bulldozers worked to achieve the desired dune berm configuration, which is about 7 feet high, 35 feet wide at the base, and 20 feet wide at the top. Over time, wind, rain, and tides will reshape the sand to a more natural looking dune.

There may be some intermittent closures of sections of beach, particularly when the tide is high.

The project focuses on protecting exposed oceanfront structures from storm surge.

Following the reconstruction of dunes, sand fencing will be installed along the dunes and beach grass will be planted.