As we move towards spring, we can look back and definitely say with a sigh of relief, WOW, what a winter! Mother Nature hit California with all her force, from the mountains to the sea. In fact, this past storm dropped significant rain on our shoreline and snow up in the mountains.
This issue of the SOS newsletter covers a myriad of informative topics to catch you all up on the happenings over the past six months or so. Jayme Timberlake, our City Coastal Zone Administrator, has been busy championing many parallel efforts to restore shoreline resilience to our Oceanside shores. Read on to stay informed of these exciting efforts!
Near term, we will be seeing Manson mobilizing on our shoreline once again for the annual harbor dredging evolution. This year should see a potential doubling of the amount of sand moved due to the city getting additional funding to place more sand on our beaches with an emphasis on getting sand well south of the pier. Please observe all safety precautions during this event.
Also, SOS Oceanside has formally organized as a 501(c)(3) public benefit non-profit organization. This will enable us to expand our education and outreach efforts to better inform everyone on the Oceanside shoreline conditions and what is being done to analyze and develop sound solutions to restore and retain our beach sand!
Lastly, we will be having an in-person SOS meeting at Bagbys on May 31, 2023. More to follow on that, and looking forward to seeing you all there! Well, bring on spring and summer to follow shortly!!
See you on our Shoreline!
Bob Ashton
President/CEO
Save Oceanside Sand
Current Oceanside Beach Conditions
As we move toward Spring, we assess the condition of the beaches resulting from the typical winter storms. Winter was cold, wet, and windy, with high seas for the first time in many years. The result was significantly more sand loss. There is now virtually no dry sand from Tyson St South. The pier area has lost several feet of more beach. There is no dry sand below the pier, and the playground is in danger of being damaged by the surf again. The parking lot just North of the pier is being used by contractors to replace all of the pier utilities, but the lot itself is in danger of eroding. There is a 4 foot drop in the sand just 6 feet away from the edge of the lot. North Strand by the Surfrider turnaround has no dry sand, and the turnaround has been undercut even further.
The only remaining good beach is North Harbor Beach. Why is it still good? Even though there has never been any sand replenishment to that beach, it has been protected by the South Jetty – by the mouth of the San Luis Rey River.
This photo was taken from the pier looking north, at the end of March. To the right, the pier contractor’s fence is along the edge of the parking lot. In some places the “cliff” is less than 6 feet away from eroding under the parking lot.
View looking north toward the pier in front of Tyson St Park. No “dry sand” most of the way — mostly cobbles.
Oceanside Approves $2.6M for Phase 2 of the Sand Nourishment and Retention Pilot Project
Relentless storms and strong currents have pounded the Oceanside coastline this winter, sweeping away vast amounts of sand, further decimating our beaches! Save Oceanside Sand (SOS) has spent this past season collaborating with the City of Oceanside on the approval and execution of a plan to restore and retain sand on our entire shoreline. Oceanside City Coastal Zone Administrator, Jayme Timberlake, continues to spearhead efforts, and the City has actively pursued several coastal projects to restore our beaches.
The most significant project is Oceanside’s Phase 2 of the Sand Nourishment and Retention Pilot Project, which Oceanside Staff presented to the City Council on January 25th, 2023. The City Staff provided a very comprehensive plan. Two critical components of the program are:
The identification of a robust sand source to conduct significant beach sand nourishment efforts.
The design competition for innovative engineering solutions for a sand retention solution. For complete information on the Phase 2 Pilot Project, visit the City Oceanside Coastal Management Website here.
Leading up to the City Council vote on January 25, volunteers from Save Oceanside Sand asked Oceanside residents to speak at the Council meeting, expressing their concern for more sand on the beach. A “call to action” newsletter went out to the 500+ members of SOS, suggesting they send letters of support for beach replenishment and retention. Over 90% of the 292 pieces of correspondence received by the Council supported Phase 2! SOS would like to thank ALL who responded in support of the Phase 2 project!
The City Council vote was dramatic. The $2.6M phase 2 pilot project was approved 4-1. Deputy Mayor Ryan Keim, and Councilmembers Peter Weiss, Rick Robison, and Eric Joyce voted to fund the project. Only our Mayor, Esther Sanchez, cast the single dissenting vote, citing her objection to any type of hard-structure beach sand retention system.
Save Oceanside Sand fully supports our City’s efforts to restore our amazing shoreline! Every Saturday during the summer, our pop-up appears on the strand to provide outreach and education to the community on the shoreline issues and the City’s solutions. Stop by and get informed, or sign our petition to support the Oceanside Phase 2 Pilot Project! For more information and to help Save Oceanside Sand, visit sosoceanside.com.
SOS Pop-up Community Education and Outreach – Supergirl Surf Contest 2022
SOS is NOW an Official Non-Profit
Save Oceanside Sand has proceeded with the steps to becoming an official non-profit (501(c)(3)) organization. We have registered and received approval from the State of California as a non-profit public benefit corporation and completed the remaining documents to file with the IRS for final approval as a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. SOS bylaws were drafted and approved, a board of Directors was established, and corporation officers were elected. The SOS website will be updated shortly with all information on the establishment as a non-profit public benefit corporation. Being a non-profit organization will enable SOS to grow and provide more opportunities for outreach and education on the Oceanside shoreline condition, as well as potential beach nourishment and retention solutions to restore resilience on our shoreline!
SOS Citizen Science
You may wonder, what is citizen science? Citizen science is the collection and analysis of data relating to the natural world by members of the general public, typically as part of a collaborative project with professional scientists.
The SOS citizen science program has been up and running since October 2020, working closely with the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) Coastal Processes Group. SOS citizen scientists conduct monthly transect measurements of the entire Oceanside shoreline. A transect is an invisible line that runs perpendicular to the shore, from the back beach/high tide mark into the ocean/intertidal zone. Our shoreline is defined by 60 such “transects,” starting at the Southern end by St. Malo and finishing at the northern end at the Harbor Beach North Jetty.
Data collection involves measuring 30 of these transects monthly, resulting in a complete data collection event. This data is then uploaded to the SIO, where Dr. Adam Young’s group processes and analyzes the data to determine the shoreline changes over time. This data is also made available to the coastal engineering team at GHD (contracted by the city for phase 2) and coastal engineers at the US Army Corps of Engineers, Los Angeles District (conducting the current USACE Oceanside shoreline study). Collected data is critical for detailed analysis of the beach profile behavior over time in developing a proposed beach sand nourishment and retention solution for our shoreline.
Connor Mack, a Scripps Institution of Oceanography representative, helps members of Save Oceanside Sand with new equipment to measure the sand’s height along Oceanside’s beaches. On his right is Serena Milne, who leads the citizen science project. Photo by Samantha Nelson – Coast News
Under the guidance of Serena Milne, who directs the SOS Citizen Science program, citizen scientists will continue conducting monthly measurements. This data collection will add to the existing volume of data for coastal scientists and engineers to analyze and develop a better understanding of sand dynamics on our shoreline.
“Citizen Scientist” Bob Walker of SOS Oceanside conducts beach sand transect measurements along the Oceanside shoreline.
“The citizen science that SOS is working on is really important to the city’s next endeavors as we’re working on the Beach Sand Nourishment and Retention System,” said Oceanside Coastal Zone Administrator Jayme Timberlake. “They’re a real asset to the city by helping encourage coastal management with a new holistic perspective,” Timberlake said about the group.
Interested in joining the SOS Citizen Science?
Send us an email: sos.citizenscience@gmail.com
Become a “Citizen Scientist”. Stroll on the pier and use CoastSnap.
Beyond following Save Oceanside Sand’s beach monitoring project, Timberlake has also worked on another citizen science effort – CoastSnap, which relies on repeated photos of the coast taken by the public to see how things change on specific sections of shoreline. Deploying citizen science tactics gets more boots on the ground – or “toes in the sand” – collecting valuable data for scientists to analyze.
Oceanside has a north facing and south facing CoastSnap Station, situated on the first half of the pier. Come take a walk on the pier and snap a photo using the QR code on the CoastSnap Station.
CoastSnap is a global citizen science network that harnesses your photos to capture our beaches’ constantly evolving coastline. By contributing a photo you will help record short and long-term beach erosion and recovery. Over time CoastSnap will help us better understand beach processes and contributing factors. Learn more and check out our City’s CoastSnap website.
SOS is Looking for a Treasurer
SOS is looking for nominations for the SOS board of directors to consider as treasurer. The treasurer is one of the elected officers for SOS and performs functions such as tracking all finances, assisting in budgeting, etc. The office of treasurer is usually a 2-year position. All those interested parties, please send a short note/email to hello@sosoceanside.com.
Volunteer with SOS
In support of SOS goals this year, the following committees are being established and or expanding. We need skilled and interested volunteers as SOS team members to participate in these committees. If interested, please send a short note/email to hello@sosoceanside.com
Committees Needing Volunteers:
Digital Marketing – Grow our marketing strategy, SOS web design/updates, media outreach, etc.
Events – Saturday in person pop-up at the pier and other local events
Supporter/Sponsor/Fundraising – Engaging citizens, businesses, and others in support of the SOS mission
Citizen Science – Assisting and conducting data collection on our shoreline. Data is provided to scientists and engineers to understand the problem better and develop sound solutions.
