Beach Enhancement Project at Gulf Islands National Seashore
Implementing Organization
US Department of the Interior
Overview
DWH Project Funding
$10,836,055
Known Leveraged Funding
$0
Funding Organization
Natural Resource Damage Assessment Trustees (NRDA)
Funding Program
Natural Resource Damage Assessment NRDA
Details
Project Category
Recreational Use
Project Actions
Engineering and/or Construction
Targeted Resources
Recreational Resources
Project Description
This project is to enhance recreational use and visitor satisfaction by removing asphalt debris (primarily asphalt fragments and road-base rock) from the beach sand at Gulf Islands National Seashore (GUIS). This debris has been scattered widely over some or all of 2,017 acres and 14 linear miles of the Fort Pickens, Santa Rosa, and Perdido Key areas of the National Park Service (NPS) Florida District of GUIS. There are also 1) a small, two-mile-long area on the Gulf side of the Fort Pickens area where sections of the old road will be removed from the tidal zone, and 2) a few small abandoned parking lots that need removing. Asphalt debris ranges in shape and size from large slabs down to brick- and pea-size. These materials originated from roads that were damaged by storms and hurricanes over decades. The primary debris removal methods will utilize mechanized equipment, supplemented by small crews using hand tools. The majority of materials are expected to be less than six inches deep, although slabs several feet deep may be found. Approximately 10 percent of the total area to be mechanically cleaned contains vegetation that will be destroyed in the cleanup process. Where vegetation does not regrow, it will be re-planted. Cleanup activities are expected to take five years, and re-planting up to two years, making the total project duration approximately seven years. Project objectives are: 1) to remove as much asphalt debris as possible from beach habitat, focusing on areas where visitors frequent; and 2) to re-establish vegetation that was destroyed by cleanup activities but did not grow back.
Contact
Nanciann Regalado(678) 296-6805
nanciann_regalado@fws.gov
Project Website
None
For official trustee information regarding the Deepwater Horizon NRDA, including information regarding the NRDA process and the status of projects, see https://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/