HAMPTON, Va. -- More than 18,000 cubic yards of sand is being delivered to Buckroe Beach as part of a beach nourishment project on the federal hurricane and storm damage reduction project located here.
The sand, trucked in from Smithfield, Va., will keep a 50-foot-wide beach design berm at 6.5 feet above sea level and protect homes and public infrastructure from receiving significant damage from flooding during coastal storms.
"The project was set up to be a storm damage reduction project, and as such, is an integral part of floodplain management for the Buckroe Beach area," said Gayle Hicks, a senior civil engineer with the City of Hampton.
Tom Lochen, the Norfolk District's project manager, said this round of nourishment also marks the final time the Corps will be financially participating in a beach nourishment project for Buckroe as part of the project.
"There is a federal spending limit of $3 million which will be achieved during this cycle," Lochen said. "After this, the City of Hampton will have sole responsibility for handling the costs and maintenance of the project into the future."
The federal limit includes the initial study, design, construction and maintenance renourishment of the beach, which was initially completed in 2005.
The project was renourished last year with 15,000 cubic yards of sand during an emergency replenishment after a powerful Nor'easter blew through the area, ripping up the shoreline. The emergency nourishment received 100 percent federal funding through Public Law 84-99, Rehabilitation Assistance for Hurricane/Shore Protection Projects and did not count against the $3 million cap set by congress.
The city has also worked to increase the amount of time between needed replenishments for Buckroe.
"The city has funded and constructed three near shore stone breakwaters to stabilize the beach," Hicks said. "Monitoring will continue on a yearly basis, and the Corps will continue to receive that data."
The breakwaters help slow wave action and allows sand to settle out with a goal of adding to the amount of sand on the beach helping to offset beach erosion.
The construction contract cost for the current round of nourishment is $920,000, which is split 50-50 between the City of Hampton and the federal government.
Dump trucks are operating in the area from 8 a.m. -- 6 p.m. and using a route determined by the City of Hampton.
Construction at the site is expected to last until mid-January.
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