The town’s beaches are stable and continue to gain sand through improvements in sand-bypassing and nourishment programs, according to an annual report presented Aug. 20 by a coastal engineering consultant.
Since 1990, when long-term sand volume measurements began, Palm Beach’s 12.2 mile-shoreline has experienced a net gain of 4.8 million cubic yards of sand, said Mike Jenkins, a coastal engineer with West Palm Beach-based Applied Technology & Management.
Jenkins and a handful of state and local scientists shared facts, figures and insight about the town’s coastal management efforts as part of the annual Palm Beach Island Beach Management Agreement stakeholder meeting at Town Hall.
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Implemented in 2013 , the BMA is a regional beach management plan that streamlines permitting for beach renourishment while improving the near-shore ecosystem by monitoring sand drift via ocean current, sea turtle nesting and near-shore hard-bottom environments.