The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, has just announced that the Duval County Shore Protection Project is officially underway with dredge Terrapin Island pumping sand at the south end of Jacksonville Beach.
The Corps contractor, Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Company will place sand on seven miles of eroded beaches, including Jacksonville, Neptune and a portion of Atlantic Beach.
The beach renourishment project will widen the beach berm between 20 to 60 feet, and raise the elevation of the beach by about 3 to 5 feet.
Initial sand placement started last week around 37th Avenue South, and will progress southward to the County Line, and then northward from 37th Avenue. The contractor will establish four or five subline/pipeline “landings” on the shore in Jacksonville Beach, one in Neptune and two landings in Atlantic Beach. GLDD will pump sand through the pipeline toward the south, and then toward the north, from each landing site.
Project completion is set for November 2016, barring unforeseen events.
The Duval County project was initially constructed in 1978-80 and since then, five principal renourishments occurred (1985-87, 1991, 1995, 2005, and 2011) in addition to periodic placement of sand dredged from navigation projects. Beach renourishment occurs about every five to six years to maintain beaches as part of the project.
The Corps awarded the 2016 construction contract June 28 to Great Lakes Dredge & Dock for $13,572,170. The renourishment is funded in partnership with the City of Jacksonville, Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and Duval County; 38.4 percent locally and 61.6 percent federally funded.
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