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Steel, U.S. Army Corps, Local Officials Share Update on Sand Replenishment Project

August 16, 2022

$15.5 million championed by Rep. Steel for the project signed into law, will bring sand to Orange County’s eroding coastline

Newport Beach, C.A. – Today representatives from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Mayors of Orange County’s coastline cities, and local officials from the Orange County Board of Supervisors joined Rep. Michelle Steel (R-CA) to share an update on the Surfside-Sunset & Newport Beach Replenishment Project, and to highlight the funding secured earlier this year in a major piece of legislation. Championed by Rep. Steel, $15.5 million in funding for the much-needed project was approved by Congress and signed into law in March. Col. Julie A. Balten from the USACE provided an update on the project’s timing, sharing that the sand replenishment will begin in 2024.

“For more than a decade this has been a top priority for me and our local community, and I’m proud to deliver this much-needed support for Orange County. Our beaches are our lifeblood, and this project will ensure the safety of our communities and the health of our coastline for generations to come. I’m grateful for the support of these local leaders and thank the U.S. Army Corps for their partnership,” said Rep. Steel.

 

“This project is a great opportunity for all of us to support these communities and provide better protection to reduce coastal erosion," said U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles District Commander Julie A. Balten. "I would like to sincerely thank our local, state and federal partners. We could not get to where we are today without all of them – those who continue to advocate for and support this project, and who continue to make the safety and well-being of this community and its people their priority. That is what public service is all about.”

“The sand replenishment project is more than just preserving coastal space for recreation, it is important in preventing flooding and other infrastructure damages caused by eroded shorelines,” said Supervisor Andrew Do, who represents Orange County’s First Supervisorial District. “I am proud to see local, state, and federal lawmakers working together to get the funding we need to protect our coastlines.”

“The City of Newport Beach greatly appreciates the work of Congresswoman Michelle Steel to secure funding for the sand replenishment project, as well as the advocacy work of our neighboring beach cities and other partners,” said Newport Beach Mayor Kevin Muldoon. “In a few short years, the additional sand from this replenishment project will help enhance our waterfront and protect against flooding of Peninsula homes and businesses.”

“This is a critical project for the long-term environmental and economic health of the Newport Beach waterfront,” said Newport Beach Councilmember Diane Dixon. “I’m pleased that we could come together today and recognize the efforts of Congresswoman Michelle Steel and the multi-agency, multi-office collaboration that it took to get the sand replenishment project funded and implemented.”

The coastline of Orange County has been eroding for decades. The cause of this destruction is not “global warming” but actions taken by government agencies during the 1930’s and 1940’s. Studies showed that the State of California had rivers controlled and harbors constructed, the federal government received an operational naval base but with the cost of losing the natural, restorative sand flow to the local beaches. From 1965 until 1995 ten stages of reconstruction were provided by the USACE funded 67% by the federal government, 30% by the state of California and 3% by local communities. Federal funding became a major issue in 1995 and since then only two Stages of replenishment have been provided over twenty seven years. The coastline is being destroyed. During her term in office,  Michelle Steel has outlined the problem and demonstrated the urgency of a solution being provided. Federal funding, held up for years, was provided in 2022 because of her persistent congressional presentations,” said President of the Surfside Storm Water Protection District John Kriss.

With the support of Orange County leaders and project stakeholders, Rep. Steel engaged with Appropriations Committee leaders to emphasize the importance of the local project. The funding will go towards the project and aid the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the beach repair, which is more than a decade overdue.

Background on Surfside-Sunset and Newport Beach Replenishment Project:

The erosion on Orange County’s beaches can be traced back to federal projects in the 1940s. The federal government widened Anaheim Bay and constructed breakwaters and jetties to service the new military bases that opened to boost military efforts for the U.S. Pacific Fleet. The USACE also created flood control projects along three local rivers, and breakwaters were constructed to create and protect the Los Angeles/Long Beach harbor. This new construction created narrowed beaches up and down the coastline that were now susceptible to extreme erosion.

The USACE and the federal government, realizing the damage that had been caused, took steps to repair the issue. The project was referred to as the “San Gabriel to Newport Bay Beach Renourishment Project (Surfside-Sunset),” and today it’s the Surfside-Sunset & Newport Beach Replenishment Project (Stage 13). The repair project, done in increments, began with in 1964 and saw eight more project stages through 1990. The project had a continued partnership between the federal government, which provided 67% of the financing, and local communities, which provided the remaining 33%. The local cost share was always covered when it was time for a new project stage.

In 2000, the USACE stated that it was no longer budgeting for any future stages in Orange County. This left the communities on the hook for the high costs and left the coast at a high risk for flooding and major storm damage.

To read more about Representative Steel’s work on this project, click here.