The Carlsbad City Council adopted a resolution Tuesday opposing devices that could interfere with the natural flow of beach sand into Carlsbad. This is a general policy statement, but it was prompted by a City of Oceanside study currently underway.
Beaches are shrinking all along San Diego County’s shoreline because of a combination of factors, including sea-level rise, coastal development and structures like jetties and harbors that keep sand from flowing south. Addressing the problem and keeping beaches healthy is a high priority for all coastal cities, including Carlsbad.
In August 2021, the Oceanside City Council voted to pursue its own sand replenishment pilot program that includes four “groins.” Groins are like jetties, but jetties are at inlets to other water bodies and groins can be anywhere along the beach. Groins, jetties and similar structures can be controversial because they may interrupt the natural flow of sand and could accelerate the erosion of beaches further down the coastline.
Here in Carlsbad, there are jetties at the Agua Hedionda and Batiquitos lagoon inlets. The NRG company did have a groin in front of the power plant, but that was recently removed, along with the marine oil pipeline it protected, because the pipeline was no longer needed for power plant operations. These structures were put in place by state agencies to protect our sensitive lagoons (and the old power plant).
In approving the resolution, the City Council said it wants to work with Oceanside and other coastal cities on a collaborative approach to sand replenishment that would benefit the entire region.
Oceanside’s project is still in the early stages and would eventually need approval from the Coastal Commission, which has not approved structures like this for some time now.
The resolution passed by the City Council will be forwarded to the City of Oceanside, the Coastal Commission and the San Diego Association of Governments.
