Posted on August 18, 2020
Longtime Beach Haven resident Bill Kapler said he is appalled by the dredging of bay mud onto the beaches of Belvoir Avenue and other nearby streets.
“This will do nothing to fix the beach erosion at Belvoir and the adjacent streets,” said Kapler, whose grandfather Amos Kapler Sr. founded Kapler’s Pharmacy in town.
Beginning in January, the state Department of Transportation embarked on a dredging project off Beach Haven. Areas dredged included the Pennas, Buoy 77, Morrison’s, Beach Haven Condos, Shelter Harbor, Eastern, Bay Harbor and Southwick channels and Buoy 77 Pennas channel spurs. Dredge material from Buoy 77 is being used to fortify the beaches, mainly along Belvoir, Chatsworth, Dolphin and Norwood avenues. Borough public works trucks collected materials at the old Coast Guard station located off Pelham Avenue, and then trucked the sand to the beaches.
The result was a large hill of black sand, which has dried out considerably since it was deposited there earlier in the summer.
According to Kapler, the single major issue is the “bulge” in the berm, or dune, jutting out around 1 Belvoir Ave., the easternmost house on the block.
“There is no amount of sand, bay mud or money that can change the natural flow of the ocean and the coastline, especially in areas where the coastline naturally changes,” he said. “Spending more money over and over again with the same results is futile. The only solution is to support and enhance the natural flow of the beach and ocean versus trying to work against Mother Nature. The berm is not different than a large sand castle – the ocean always wins.”
Kapler said the only easy solution is to have the berm moved to the more natural flow of the coastline in this area.
“Maybe it can be done with the consent of the owner, but the ideal answer would be to buy out the owner (or use public domain) and remove the house,” he said. “This house should have never been built.”
Although he is not on the Island this summer, Kapler said he has lived on Belvoir his whole life.
“Thus, I believe I know more about this street and beach than anyone else,” he said. “Belvoir beach is something very special to me personally. I have seen a lot at Belvoir beach.”
He said he stayed there during the March Storm of 1962, and has seen the dunes grow following that event due to bulldozers pushing sand to enhance the dunes in the fall as well as seeing sand fill in on the beach over the winter and spring.
“They’ve put Christmas trees in the dunes with dune fences to capture sand,” said Kapler. “Some results show that this was successful.”
He said that eventually, the large mound of dredged sand will wash away.
“It’s a quick fix which will probably be a big waste,” said Kapler, who said he has complained to borough officials to no avail.
Mayor Nancy Taggart Davis said initially, she was hoping the dredged material would have gotten to the beaches sooner.
“COVID-19 has delayed everything,” she said. “The state got backed up and couldn’t do the work on time. And then when that happens, it gets finished later, and we wind up with a big mound of dredged sand at the start of the summer season instead of earlier in the spring.” —E.E.
Source: thesandpaper
