By Chelsea Reed
Beach nourishment moves sand from a source place to a beach as a strategy to slow its erosion. While beach nourishment does not completely prevent erosion, it allows the natural elements to “munch” on something else. It protects roadways and buildings near the coastline. Many coastal American destinations from the Northeast to the Southwest implement beach nourishment, including the Outer Banks.
Our guests have asked us about beach nourishment this year in the Outer Banks. We’ve compiled a list of answers to their most common questions below:
Q: When will beach nourishment take place in the Outer Banks, and will it be near my cottage?
A: We have no beach nourishment scheduled in Nags Head this year. All of our vacation rental homes are located in Nags Head, near milepost 17. They’re also pet-friendly so you and your fur-babies can enjoy a wonderful time in your cottage and on our beach. Beach nourishment is taking place in Duck, Kitty Hawk, Kill Devil Hills, Southern Shores, and Buxton (Hatteras Island) from May to September 2017.
Q: Will the private beach access for my Rentals On The Ocean vacation cottage be affected?
A: No. There is no beach nourishment scheduled for Nags Head, so Rentals On The Ocean’s beautiful private beaches are unaffected. Did you know that Nags Head is one of the top 10 pet-friendly beaches for 2017? That’s one more reason Sparky can come along with you to enjoy the sand, salt air, and surf!
Q: What does beach nourishment look like?
A: Nourishing a beach is a complex task that coastal engineers carefully design. Ships offshore use power equipment to pump sand from the ocean to a section of beach on shore with a temporary pipeline. Other equipment onshore then widens the beach with the new sand. This is a normal part of beach nourishment.
Q: Where is the sand coming from?
A: Matching the “borrowed source” sand to the sand from the eroding beach is very important to beach nourishment and the environment. With this in mind, all the sand for Duck, Southern Shores, Kitty Hawk, and Kill Devil Hills is coming from two borrow sources offshore Kill Devil Hills and Duck. The sand for Buxton is from a borrow source 1.7 miles offshore its project beach.
Q: What about the sea turtles?
A: Coastal engineers perform many studies on the environments of the eroding beaches and borrow source areas before and after a beach nourishment to ensure responsible beach planning. N.E.S.T. (Network for Endangered Sea Turtles) volunteers will monitor the beaches around the clock from Duck to Kill Devil Hills for sea turtle nests during nourishment. If a turtle is spotted, construction will stop over 500 feet of the nest until it is safely relocated. Nourished beaches after construction can create or restore habitats for sea turtles that were lost from erosion.
Pets are always welcome at Rentals On The Ocean!
Our oceanfront and oceanside vacation rental homes are located in Nags Head, just past milepost 17 on S Old Oregon Inlet Road in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Our cottages are located next to each other so we can accommodate 2 to 100 people at a time. Perfect for your immediate family, family reunion, church group or wedding. You can see our cottages here.
For questions about our beaches and rental bookings, feel free to contact our friendly staff.
We look forward to hearing from you!
This blog is written and posted by Chelsea Reed, copywriter. It was published on Rentals On The Ocean website.