Erosion a concern for local beaches after nor'easter

Rehoboth and Dewey beaches each spent $11.2 million for beach replenishment during December of 2016.

Less than a month later, though, the forecast called for a nor'easter, and beach towns started to worry about their beaches and how they would hold up in the storm.

The nor'easter hit on Jan. 23, bringing surging waves and driving wind and rain to the beaches.

Even with the recently completed project in Rehoboth and the millions of dollars spent, the town still worried said Krys Johnson, communications director for Rehoboth Beach.

"We keep our eyes and ears on the forecast, and we are in constant contact with DNREC," she said. "If there is a nor'easter coming through here, it's critical. It makes a huge impact here."

And the northern beaches aren't the only ones concerned.

The combination of the millions of dollars spent by Rehoboth and the possibility for more nor'easters this winter is worrisome for Bethany Beach mayor Jack Gordon, who fears funding might not be in place from the federal government to repair his beaches.

Gordon said the most recent nor'easter, which hit Bethany on Jan. 23, did severe damage to the beach.

"It took out half of our dunes and knocked out a stairway and a handicapped ramp leading down to the beach," Gordon said. "We are in dire need of beach replenishment. We are very concerned for the rest of the winter."

Farther south, Virginia and Maryland beaches fared well after a series of nor'easters hit Delmarva in January, and there is regularly scheduled beach nourishment planned for 2017 in Maryland while Virginia is still being studied for further nourishment, according to the Army Corps of Engineers.

Stephen Rochette, the public information officer with the Army Corps of Engineers in Philadelphia, said Fenwick Island, South Bethany and Bethany Beach are also due for beach nourishment in 2017.

Those projects are regularly scheduled, however, Rochette said problems in those towns were exacerbated by storms which hit the area in 2015 and 2016.

While the cost of the beach nourishment projects isn't set in stone — a final total won't be decided until the contract is rewarded — the most recent periodic re-nourishment and post-storm repair for Bethany and South Bethany was roughly $16.6 million in 2012. For Fenwick, repairs in 2011 were roughly $3.6 million.

Chris Gardner, the public information officer for the Army Corps of Engineers in Baltimore, said the Ocean City beaches were last nourished  in 2013, which was "roughly $15 million."

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"We have a program called the Flood Control and Coastal Emergency Program," he said. "We are going through the engineering and design phase for the project and hoping to get funds for the project next month."

Rochette said if the programs were to start this winter, they would most likely not be finished by the time summer begins.

Because of this, he said the projects will probably begin in the fall of 2017.

Gardner said his office has not received any reports of damage to the beaches in Ocean City, meaning the project worked as designed, but regularly scheduled maintenance will occur in 2017.

"We are in the process of getting funds in place, and if it were feasible to get it done before summer we would do that but right now it looks like it will be done after summer," he said. "Right now, we would probably be doing the re-nourishment in Ocean City this fall."

Beach nourishment is a way to extend the beach to create a greater distance between the sea and the community to ensure the community is protected from any sort of damaging surge.

The project focuses both on building up the berm of the beach, which is the distance between the ocean and the mainland, as well as building up dunes.

The dunes protect the community and the berms protect the dunes.

Still, Gordon, Bethany's mayor, fears his town might not be able to have the procedure done due to lack of funds.

READ MORE: Is the cost of OC, Del., beach replenishment worth it?

Terry McGean, the town engineer of Ocean City, confirmed there was no damage in his town, but the town will receive beach nourishment.

"We expect to be doing some after this (summer) season," he said. "During fall 2017 or early winter 2018."

Gardner said the project would focus on the vast majority of Ocean City, from Fourth Street to the Delaware state line.

He said the final cost has not been determined, however, that should be around the price of the 2013 project.

For Fenwick, the beach nourishment represents business as usual, said Fenwick Town Manager Terry Tieman, as the recent nor'easters had no major impact on the town's beaches.

"We are anticipating a beach nourishment this year, but that is just regularly scheduled," Tieman said. "It has nothing to do with the nor'easters which have hit our area."

To the north, Lewes City Manager Paul Eckrich said his town escaped relatively unscathed.

He said there was no damage sustained during the Jan. 23 storm.

"We do have sand in some parking lots along the beach," he said. "But there are no erosion type problems."

And despite the scare after a big storm, Rehoboth's beaches were also unharmed from the most recent nor'easter.

Johnson said the most recent beach nourishment project in Rehoboth held up well.

"We did not receive any major damage," she said. "We are very pleased. There was minimal erosion, but the ocean replenishes the beach. We were very fortunate."

Rochette said it is typical that some beaches will receive major damage and some beaches will receive very little — or even no — damage.

He said the uncertainty can make any town worry, and it's nearly impossible to predict which town will be impacted the most. The amount of erosion has to do with the way the beaches are laid out and weather factors, such as the way the wind is blowing and how big the waves are.

'It's hard to pick any one factor," Rochette said.

rghughes@dmg.gannett.com

On Twitter @hughesg19