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Save the Beaches

Fire Island Inlet to Gilgo Beach Dredging Project; Winter of 2008

Project goals are to deepen and reestablish the Fire Island Inlet waters while at the same time, add sorely need sand to
the barrier beaches from Cedar Beach to Gilgo Beach. Below are photos of the dredging machines and the pipe heading towards Cedar.

Pictured below is the pipe feed from the Fire Island Inlet along with the Survey Team off shore, east of Gilgo Beach.
The Survey Stick on the right side of the photo has a red flag at the top, this is how much sand will be placed.
The Seagulls enjoys great food whenever the dredging occurs.

Pictures below show the completed beach area to the east and then the pending area to the west.
Beach Replenishment is complete to across from the marsh between Hemlock and Garbage Cove,
maybe 1/2 mile from Gilgo Beach as off Jan. 28th, 08.

The Pipe terminates with this nozzle. The pipe runs from the Fire Island Inlet to this termination.

The dredging starts after a horseshoe area has been temporarily created by pushing sand with the bulldozers

After sand has been pumped for 20 to 60 minutes, the bulldozers move in and push the sand to the wall building up beach height.
This process is repeated until the horseshoe has been filled to the height and dept of the Survey markers.

The crews work in 3 shifts, 24 hours a day. Each shift completes approximately 100 feet of new beach a shift on this particular project.
Survey markers have been placed to the west side of the Gilgo Beach Underpass as of February 26th, 2008.
As far as we can tell, that is the scope of the project.

UPDATE 4/01/08; Project completed, crews gone.
Beach replenishment ran from Fire island Inlet to The old Coast Guard Station at a rate of 100-150 feet of new beach.
The last 1/2 mile seemed more of an height addition than actual new beach.

In the end the old and new merged together about a 1/4 mile east of the public entrance.
We are sure to feel the good effects of this project for the summer to come.

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