BOEMRE Authorizes Offshore Sand Resources for Shoreline Restoration in Florida
WASHINGTON, DC – The Bureau of Ocean Energy
Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) today announced
that it has authorized the use of Outer
Continental Shelf (OCS) sand resources for the 2011 Pinellas County,
Fla., “Federal Shore Protection and Restoration Project.”
BOEMRE signed a
Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, and the County
of Pinellas to dredge up to 1.8 million cubic yards of OCS sediment
to restore eroded areas along 8.7 miles of shoreline. The areas to
be restored include the Sand Key portion of Clearwater Beach,
Belleair Beach, Indian Rocks Beach, Indian Shores, Redington Shores,
and North Redington Beach.
“BOEMRE’s Marine Minerals Program
provides OCS sand resources that help reduce the effects of erosion
and preserve the integrity of our nation’s shoreline,” said BOEMRE
Director Michael R. Bromwich. “We are pleased to be able to work
with communities such as Pinellas County to restore and protect its
coastal environment.”
Florida’s barrier island beaches need
regular replenishment because of frequent storms and the every day
force of waves and currents. Pinellas County protects its barrier
island beaches with the Pinellas County Beach Erosion Control
Project. Sand is placed along the shorelines of Sand Key, Treasure
Island, and Long Key to control shoreline erosion and provide
greater storm protection.
Planning for this project began in
2009 and BOEMRE (then the Minerals Management Service) cooperated
with the County of Pinellas, Fla. in the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) review process. An Environmental Assessment was
completed on May 17, 2011.
Through the MOA, the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers will dredge sediment from a borrow site that lies 12.8
statute miles west of Clearwater Pass. The project is expected to
begin in June 2011.
For more information, go to:
http://www.boemre.gov/sandandgravel.
Contact: BOEMRE
Public Affairs