Posted on August 13, 2024
PERDIDO KEY, Fla. — A proposed island restoration project in Perdido Key could make boaters and businesses both happy.
Escambia County is looking to use the dredging of the Intracoastal Waterway to restore the sunset islands. Some of the sand will also be used for beach re-nourishment.
The small islands in the middle of the Intracoastal Waterway are a popular parking spot for boaters.
But Tim Day, Escambia County’s Coastal Zone Manager, says the islands are slowly degrading.
However, a proposed project could change that.
“The Sunset Island project is currently in a design phase,” Day said. “We’re working on a procurement to bring an engineer on board to coordinate with the county and the Army corps of engineers to develop an entirely new place of disposal for sand that are dredged in the intracoastal waterway.”
The county says waterway is dredged every few years to allow large barges and boats to pass through.
The sand is normally dumped along the shoreline on a public easement in front of businesses and homes.
This time, the county wants to dump the sand and enlarge the islands in the intracoastal.
“Our goal is to create a new disposal area and create a large recreational area where boaters can go an enjoy,” Day said. “There will be a section set aside for a habitat for endangered shore birds. And in times after hurricanes, we’ll have another optional sand source that we can use to help replenish dunes on the key.”
Sava Varazo is an environmental specialist. He presented the idea to the county.
He says this project will save the county millions of dollars.
Current price:He convinced commissioner Jeff Bergosh to set aside $200,000 of funds for design.
“The county has to have trucks down River Road and carry it to where they need beach re-nourishment,” Varazo said. “That’s a very costly issue. There were over 500 trucks when they did it last time and they had to repave River Road, which cost millions of dollars.”
Varazo says some sand will be pumped into a reserve area near the islands to be used to re-nourish beaches after a storm.
Current price:”It’s a win all for everybody,” Varazo said. “I estimate it will have the county around $20 million in the long run. I say it could be $50 million in our lifetime because it depends on how many storms you have.”
The county says it will take years of dredging for the entire island to form, but boaters said they like the idea.
“We’re growing a lot down here, so the more places people can enjoy the water, the better I guess,” boater John Fowler said.
The county says this project is still in the design phase and would need to be approved by the county commissioners.
