Jacksonville, Florida (Sept. 26, 2022) -- Lt. Gen. Scott A. Spellmon, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Commanding General and 55th Chief of Engineers, signed the Miami-Dade Coastal Storm Risk Management Project Chief’s Report for congressional approval Sept. 26, 2022.
The Recommended Plan calls for periodic beach nourishment of approximately 6.1 miles of county coastline, including construction of dune and berm features, through Bal Harbour Village, the Town of Surfside, and portions of the City of Miami Beach. In addition, a series of groins with a total combined length of more than 900 feet will be constructed in Bal Harbour.
“The Miami-Dade CSRM study found that we can reduce risk along the county’s ocean shoreline from erosion, inundation and wave attack through employing beach nourishment along with a series of groins,” said USACE Jacksonville planning team lead, Marty Durkin.
A variety of sand sources for the project have been identified, including bypass from the Baker’s Haulover Inlet and backpass from accretional areas of South Beach, as well as new offshore borrow areas within state offshore waters, he said.
The federal renourishment project will assure a 50-year extension of the present beach protection project, which comes to an end in 2025.
“For more than 45 years, Miami-Dade County has worked in partnership, as the Non-Federal Sponsor, with the Army Corps of Engineers to implement this important federal project, which serves as a critical component of our community’s resilience,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava.
“Without this re-authorization, our county would not be able to provide adequate erosion protection to our shoreline. We look forward to continuing this successful partnership for a new 50-year term, beginning in 2025.”
“The Miami-Dade Coastal Storm Risk Management project is a major pillar of the matrix of shoreline stabilization and resilience actions we are undertaking to protect the national economic interests of the United States,” said Spellmon.
“These federal and local partnerships are a tangible, shared commitment to preserving and strengthening the coastal environments, economies and communities of the nation. Miami-Dade County in particular, with its thriving urban life and its beaches, is an American icon known around the world and a cultural and economic center of national and international significance. And USACE is committed, along with our steadfast partners, in ensuring its future viability and growth,” he said.
The signed Chief’s Report will be forwarded to Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, the Hon. Michael Connor, and then to the Office of Management and Budget and Congress for appropriation in an upcoming Water Resources Development Act, said Jacksonville District project manager, Chris McNees.
Initial construction will take place over the course of several years and calls for the placement of some 10 million cubic yards of sand over the 50-year period of the project. Renourishment of its various reaches is expected to take place at intervals of three to four years, and native vegetation will be planted to stabilize the fill and build beach resilience over time.
The estimated project first cost is $368 million, which will be 57.6 percent federally funded, the remaining 42.4 percent funded by Miami-Dade County. The periodic renourishment costs will be shared, with the federal government providing 44.3 percent of funding, and the county 55.7 percent. The 50-year project’s average annual cost is estimated to be $6.9 million.
“I want to thank the USACE Jacksonville team, who have worked diligently for four years with our county and other agency partners to bring this project to life,” said Col. James Booth, USACE Jacksonville Commander. “And I can assure our collaborators, and the people of Miami, that the Corps will be on site executing this project to protect the coastline and all the residents of the south Florida for decades to come.”