PLUM ISLAND — Final figures haven't been compiled, but it appears that Salisbury and Newbury both received their full quota of sand in a recently completed project to renourish their beaches.
Meanwhile, Newburyport is closer to getting its own allotment of sand to stabilize an eroded section of its Plum Island beach between 53rd and 57th streets.
In their first meeting since the renourishment effort was finished, several members of a group called the Merrimack River Beach Alliance voiced satisfaction that they helped get the $5.5 million project planned, permitted and funded.
"Together we did it, and we did something no one thought was possible," state Sen. Bruce Tarr told the group "It's gratifying not only that we got it done, we got it done together."
Tarr, co-chairman of the Beach Alliance, is a Gloucester Republican whose district includes Newbury.
Mark Habel of the Army Corps of Engineers told the Beach Alliance late last week that the preliminary results of surveys conducted by the corps and its contractor, Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. of Oak Brook, Ill., indicated that Salisbury Beach received about 42,500 cubic yards of sand, and the Newbury section of Plum Island got a little more than 120,000.
Contract specifications called for 40,000 yards for Salisbury and 120,000 for Newbury.
Habel said the newly deposited sand should last between three and five years, depending on wind and weather.
The sand is a by-product of the dredging of the Merrimack River channel for marine navigation. Dredged material is usually deposited near, but not on, the shore, which is both less expensive and simpler.
Habel said Great Lakes over-dredged the channel somewhat to get enough sand for Plum Island, after a storm just before the project started damaged the shoreline.
Newburyport was part of the Beach Alliance from its inception more than two years ago but was not a recipient of the dredged sand. The city's beach erosion problem developed later than in Salisbury and Newbury.
The state Department of Conservation and Recreation awarded Newburyport a $50,000 grant to buy sand for its beach effort. The grant was matched by $25,000 in city funds.
Planning Director Andrew Port said permits are in hand for the project to place 2,700 cubic yards of sand along 550 feet of eroded shoreline on Newburyport's section of Plum Island beach.
DCR General Counsel Gary Davis said "the check is in the mail" from the agency to the city.
Port said the sand will be transported and deposited by SumCo Eco-Contracting of Salem. SumCo is a subcontractor to Great Lakes Dredge & Dock, installing snow fencing and planting dune grass in Salisbury and Newbury.
NJ Man Charged With Murder in Death of Patz
Support, Fun for Kids of Fallen Soldiers at Camp
Fugitive Penguin Caught, Returned to Aquarium
50 Years Later, Underground Fire Still Burning
Light Show Transforms Sydney Opera House
Raw Video: Unruly Passenger Restrained in Miami
Raw Video: Robber Uses Drive-thru Window
Raw Video: Dragon Arrives at Space Station
Calif.'s Coronado Named Nation's Best Beach
CEO Salaries Become Sore Issue in Labor Disputes
Raw Video: Fight Erupts in Ukrainian Parliament
Texan Ranchers Remain Wary of Drought
Raw Video: Soldiers Plant Flags at Arlington
Police: Man Arrested in Etan Patz Disappearance
NYC Protests: the Revolution Will Be Scripted
Chicago U.S. Attorney Fitzgerald Resigns
Neighbors of Etan Patz's Suspect: It's Shocking
Gulf Fishermen Reel From Seafood Troubles
Stuntman Makes Skydive Without Parachute in UK
Raw Video: Bride Who Faked Cancer Released
