The official start of the Avalon/Stone Harbor beach fill project, which was set to begin before the end of January, will be prolonged for couple of weeks, reports the Borough of Avalon.
The announcement was made during the weekly beach fill progress meeting on Thursday, January 26th, at the Stone Harbor firehouse.
At the meeting, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers informed attendees that the tentative start date of sand being dredged from Hereford Inlet onto Stone Harbor’s beaches is expected to begin on or about February 7th. “ Stone Harbor’s beach fill will begin first, with Avalon’s beach fill being conducted after Stone Harbor ,” the Corps said.
It will take approximately 28 days to complete Stone Harbor’s portion of the project. This will result in 940,000 cubic yards of sand to be placed on the Avalon beaches between 9th Street and the north end of 38th Street in order to restore the beachfront to the federal template.
The Avalon portion of the project will take approximately 37 days; dredging is often interrupted due to rough seas and any mechanical issues with the dredge. It is anticipated that Avalon’s major portion of the beach fill will begin in early to mid March.
According to the borough, the dredge “Texas” from Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Company is currently in the Philadelphia area and was not able to come to the Jersey Shore this week due to rough seas created by Monday’s coastal storm event.
The “Texas” is expected to perform about one week worth of emergency dredge work in the Christiana River near Wilmington before coming to the 7 Mile Beach for the project.
In advance of the dredge’s arrival, various heavy equipment has already been mobilized to both communities. Approximately 4,000 additional feet of pipe is expected to arrive in Stone Harbor for the project.
This project is a partnership between the United States Army Corps of Engineers, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, and the Boroughs of Avalon and Stone Harbor.