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8:48 am - March 03, 2016

Emergency erosion fix in place at Westport by the Sea condos

Materials for the fix were transported across the uplands through an opening between Buildings 2 and 3.
Materials for the fix were transported across the uplands through an opening between Buildings 2 and 3.
Sand was transferred from dump trucks in the parking lot to this smaller rig for the run to the fill site.
Sand was transferred from dump trucks in the parking lot to this smaller rig for the run to the fill site.
With half of the sand fill dispersed, the first layer of coir mesh was rolled out to the edge and covered.
With half of the sand fill dispersed, the first layer of coir mesh was rolled out to the edge and covered.
A row of hay bales were placed on the mesh seen in this photo along the front lip of the fill, with a second layer of mesh then rolled over them and back across the fill site. A final layer of sand was then added.
A row of hay bales were placed on the mesh seen in this photo along the front lip of the fill, with a second layer of mesh then rolled over them and back across the fill site. A final layer of sand was then added.
The first step in the fix was to anchor the large driftwood in the eroded cove in front of Building 8.
The first step in the fix was to anchor the large driftwood in the eroded cove in front of Building 8.

By Barb Aue, Editor

With permits in hand late last week, Brumfield Construction Inc. started work last Friday, Feb. 26, on an emergency temporary fix for erosion issues in front of the Westport by the Sea condominium complex at the foot of W. Ocean Avenue in Westport.

The problem

This past fall and winter, erosion has eaten away more than 60 feet of uplands in front of the property, bringing the bankline to within 80 feet of the front of Buildings 7 and 8, the two northernmost structures in the complex.

To add to the destruction, strong westerly winds combined with King and high tides resulted in wave action that carved a cove in front of building 8. That cove grew to approximately 30 feet in width, leaving a narrow 50-foot distance from its tip to the building 8 foundation.

The fix

The permits allow the Westport by the Sea Homeowners Associations to replicate the embankment in that area to the height it was prior to the creation of the cove and swale.

The emergency fix calls for trucking in up to 1,000 cubic yards of locally sourced sand to fill the erosion-created cove and to fill a two-foot deep swale created by water run-up in the uplands between the head of the cove and the lawn in front of building 8.

The work

The erosion-created cove filled with hundreds of pieces of driftwood of all sizes, up to and including large logs. Brumfield’s first task was to anchor the largest pieces of driftwood in the cove into the beach. Last Friday, workers wrapped heavy cables around the largest logs, which were each then attached to long steel anchor rods that were driven approximately six feet down into the bedrock below the beach.

A biodegradable geo-fabric was then placed on the uplands area between the cove and in the swale.

The area was then covered with sand, then ‘blanketed’ by a bio-engineered product known as coir mesh. Coir mesh erosion control blankets are open weave, pure coconut meshes. They are one of the strongest and most durable natural fiber surface erosion control solutions available. The mesh decomposes slowly to provide prolonged protection while allowing vegetation to grow through it and anchor itself.

The coir mesh was then covered with another layer of sand, followed by another layer of mesh and sand, bringing the eroded uplands area back up the height it was before the erosion.

The sand was transported to the site using access from the complex parking lot between buildings 2 and 3. The access route through the dune grass to the erosion site was then restored to pre-project condition.

 

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