Solana Beach replenishment halfway complete

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Los Angeles District said that the dredging operations and sand replenishment works at Solana Beach are about halfway complete.

The project, which reduces coastal storm damage and erosion along a 7,200-foot-long stretch of shoreline, includes construction of a 150-foot-wide beach fill using 700,000 cubic yards of compatible sediment.

Operations started January 17 and are on schedule to wrap up in mid-March, according to Caleb Lodge, coastal engineer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles District.

Lodge also said that the contractor Manson Construction Co. is employing its split-hull trailing suction hopper dredge, called the Bayport.

The vessel collects between 15,000 and 20,000 cubic yards of sand per day from the offshore borrow site, from which the vessel pumps it ashore through a connected pipe.

Once deposited on the beach, the sand is spread throughout the designated stretch of shoreline with bulldozers.