THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, November 18, 1994 TAG: 9411180457
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY LANE DeGREGORY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: KILL DEVIL HILLS LENGTH: Long : 110 lines
As 75 mph winds whipped against the meeting room's plate-glass windows and waves washed across the hotel's oceanfront gazebo, members of the state's Coastal Resources Commission debated erosion controls for North Carolina's beach communities.
The appointed body is considering changes in rules that would limit the amount of time property owners could use sandbags to shore up waterfront structures.
Currently, there is no time limit on how long sandbags may remain in place.
North Carolina's coast has about two miles of sandbags. Approximately 2,500 feet of private property is protected by sandbags in Dare County. Sandbags guard another 5,000 feet of N.C. Route 12 along Hatteras Island.
Staff members at the state's Division of Coastal Management proposed that sandbags be removed from oceanfront structures after two years.
If the building is larger than 5,000 square feet, sandbags could stay for up to five years. If the community in which the building is located is actively pursuing a beach-nourishment project, the sandbags could remain for five years, regardless of the size of the structure.
The rule changes were recommended in summer after the environmental group Surfrider Foundation said sandbags placed in front of the Mariner Motel in Kill Devil Hills were interfering with public access to the beach and were not temporary solutions to erosion control.
Surfrider members did not speak at Thursday's meeting. But representatives of the group who attended the meeting said they plan to submit written comments in support of the general direction the Coastal Resources Commission's rules have taken.
Government officials and members of the public have until Dec. 1to submit written comments on the rule changes. The Coastal Resources Commission plans to vote on the issue at its December meeting. Most speakers at Thursday's meeting opposed the sandbag rule changes.
``The oceanfront hotels, rental cottages and other establishments here are our tax base. It concerns us greatly when you start regulating what we can do to protect our tax base,'' said Kill Devil Hills Planner Greg Loy.
``Look out the window. You can see how rough our oceanfront environment is. We don't support the removal of any sandbags already in place. We think any bags that meet today's standards should be allowed to stay.''
Topsail Beach Mayor Pro Tem Paul Moneypenny agreed. ``We've had sandbags in place for more than 20 years and they don't block access to the beach any more than the natural dunes,'' he said. ``Requiring the removal of our bags would significantly adversely affect the stabilization of our dunes.''
Another proposed change would mandate that sandbags could only be placed in front of a property once - regardless of how many times that property transfers ownership.
None of Thursday's speakers supported that rule. One said if it was necessary, the state should ensure that future property owners know whether they will have the option of using sandbags.
According to the proposed regulations, sandbags can only be used when the ocean comes within 20 feet of the building. Kitty Hawk attorney Bobby Outten, who was representing the Sea Foam Motel, said that rule is much too vague.
``What is 20 feet of beach today might've been 40 feet yesterday,'' said the lawyer. ``That 20-feet rule should be sufficiently extended to allow property owners to react to the erosion problem over time. I'm very concerned about that particular criteria for sandbag placement.''
In addition to the sandbag issue, the 15-member Coastal Resources Commission - whose members are appointed by the governor - discussed beach nourishment as a viable option for erosion control.
The N.C. Division of Coastal Management has recommended that beach nourishment be listed as an ``acceptable'' erosion control method. Options such as moving structures and demolishing buildings are classified as ``preferred'' methods. Most speakers said nourishment should be equally as acceptable as the other options.
``Beach nourishment is and will continue to be the most effective sand management tool in North Carolina,'' Dare County Planner Raymond Sturza told the Coastal Resources Commission. ``It's much more than an accepted response. It must be considered an essential management tool - and preferable response to erosion.''
Outten echoed those sentiments. ``For some properties, beach nourishment is the only response,'' the lawyer said. ``This hotel probably can't be moved. Nourishment should be moved up to a preferred option for coastal communities.''
In summer, Dare County's Board of Commissioners approved a $3.2 million feasibility study for what could become the longest beach-nourishment project on the mid-Atlantic coast. If the five-year study pans out, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will widen by 50 feet 10 miles of beach between Kitty Hawk and Nags Head.
Construction, scheduled to be completed around the turn of the century, would involve pumping nearly 200,000 truckloads of sand from the near-shore ocean floor onto the beaches. Oceanfront dunes would be raised to eight feet.
The entire beach-building project is estimated to cost about $32.5 million. Total costs of the study and construction will be shared by federal, state and local governments. Corps officials say the effort will have to be redone every four years at a cost of about $13.2 million.
``There are those who say when we spend funds on beach nourishment, we are throwing our money away,'' Sturza said. ``Is that true in Wrightsville beach where we've been paying for a nourishment program since the 1960s? They have a much better beach there now. It supports a large tourism economy - and helps may people soothe their souls.''
Lauren Kolodij, a representative of the North Carolina Coastal Federation, was the only environmentalist who took the podium at Thursday's meeting. She supported most of the recommended rule changes. But she said she was concerned that one alteration would allow property owners to protect their septic tanks with sandbags.
``I think you should require a written report from county health officials saying that there's no other way to save a septic tank before you allow property owners to put sandbags around it,'' Kolodij said. ``I'm concerned about the effect areas eroded around the septic tanks would have when they're so close to beach recreational areas.'' by CNB