Coastal Science & Engineering has developed plans and has supervised construction of over 50 beach nourishment projects in South Carolina and North Carolina during the past 35 years. Projects in South Carolina have involved over one-third of the developed coast (14 localities from North Myrtle Beach to Hunting Island) giving our team exceptional familiarity with the range of conditions in the state.
Among CSE’s most innovative projects was the restoration of two miles of beach along Seabrook Island (SC) by inlet relocation, a project that required excavation of a new inlet and closure of an unstable migrating inlet. Upon closure, the shoals of the abandoned tidal delta welded to the shoreline by natural processes, creating a beach over 1,000 feet wide. The project eventually added over 1.5 million cubic yards to Seabrook’s beach at a total cost around $600,000.
CSE has also engineered numerous traditional nourishment projects which involved excavation and placement by hydraulic dredges using a range of borrow sources. Projects constructed/planned to date involve over 30 million cubic yards at a cost of (~)$215 million. The majority of CSE projects began construction within two years of initial planning and permitting. Funding for the majority of projects has been through combinations of local and state sources.
