TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Bruce Moe, City Manager
FROM:
Anne McIntosh, Community Development Director
Dana Murray, Environmental Programs Manager
SUBJECT: Title
Manhattan Beach Dune Restoration Project (Community Development Director McIntosh).
DISCUSS AND SUPPORT
Line
_________________________________________________________
Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that City Council receive a report about the Manhattan Beach Dune Restoration Project proposal by The Bay Foundation to conduct a coastal dune enhancement and restoration in a 3.5-acre portion of Manhattan Beach and authorize the Mayor to sign a letter in support of the project.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
The recommended action has no monetary fiscal impact upon the budget. The City’s contribution to the project will be in staff time expended to meet with partners and stakeholders and to conduct outreach.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
In partnership with the Los Angeles County Department of Beaches and Harbors (LACDBH), The Bay Foundation (TBF) is proposing to complete an enhancement of approximately 3.5 acres of the existing back dunes at Bruce’s Beach from 36th Street to 23rd Street, along approximately 0.6 miles of coastline. The project would involve a passive beach dune restoration and existing dune enhancement with the intent to:
1. Increase the resiliency of the shoreline through the restoration of sandy beach and foredune* habitat;
2. Implement “soft-scape” protection measures against sea level rise and coastal storms; and
3. Increase engagement of the community through enhanced beach experiences, outreach, and education.
The restoration project would involve the removal of non-native vegetation, seeding/planting of native vegetation, strategic installation of temporary sand fencing as vegetation establishes, installation of symbolic fencing on existing pathways, and installation of educational features like interpretive signage. TBF will apply for grant funding and implement the project with all detailed project components agreed to by partners including the City of Manhattan Beach and LACDBH prior to implementation.
*Foredune is a dune ridge at a beach that is stabilized by vegetation.
BACKGROUND:
Southern California beach systems and associated wildlife are highly impacted by many threats, including native species extirpation and extinction, erosion, pollution, and loss of natural morphology. However, these systems also offer essentially the last line of defense in terms of natural “soft scape” protection, providing a cost-effective buffer to storm surges and other regular, predictable threats such as sea level rise and erosion.
As a vital part of the coastline, beaches and dunes support and protect homes, roads, bike paths, and infrastructure, providing a natural buffer from sea level rise as well as from tidal and wave action from the ocean. Beach habitats and dunes are critical in managing sand transport to create resilient beach morphologies, which naturally adapt to climate change impacts.
The establishment of a living shoreline through the restoration of coastal dunes is of specific interest and relevance to ecosystem-based management in the Southern California Bight. This innovative approach would increase the extent and condition of a key ecosystem in the L.A. area, including all of the functions and services they provide such as habitat for native species, accreting sediment and preventing coastal erosion, sequestering carbon, and many more.
The City’s 2018-2020 Environmental Work Plan was presented to City Council on November 7, 2017, and approved by the City Council at an Environmental Study Session on January 31, 2018. Included in the Environmental Work Plan is a goal for the City to build climate resiliency, including potential beach dune restorations, and is part of the City’s larger efforts to plan for adaptation to climate change.
TBF is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization founded in 1990 to restore and enhance Santa Monica Bay and local coastal waters. The organization approached the City of Manhattan Beach and the LACDBH with a proposal to develop a beach dune restoration project to achieve goals of restoring native species and demonstrating a low-cost, natural approach to address future sea level rise and coastal flooding related to climate change.
On September 21, 2018, TBF coastal scientists presented on sea level rise and coastal ecology, and discussed a potential beach dune restoration project with the Sustainability Task Force (STF), which was well-received and supported by STF members. Staff and the STF determined that conducting beach dune restoration on a portion of Manhattan Beach could benefit the City by providing restoration of natural processes to impacted coastal systems, improving ecological and utilitarian functions of beach dunes, and serving as a model for similar coastal resiliency projects statewide to mitigate the impacts of future sea level rise along our coastline. The project would also result in a publicly-accessible natural habitat area on Manhattan Beach that would provide opportunities for bird watching, science education, and passive recreation activities.
In the months following the STF meeting, City staff met with TBF and LACDBH staff to scout out and identify potential beach dune restoration sites along the City’s coastline, and TBF researched and developed a project scope for the Manhattan Beach Dune Restoration Project (Attachment 1).
DISCUSSION:
This project proposes the enhancement of approximately 3.5 acres of the existing back dunes at Bruce’s Beach in Manhattan from 36th Street to 23rd Street, approximately 0.6 miles of coastline (Attachment 1, Map 1). The restoration project will involve the removal of non-native vegetation, seeding/planting of native vegetation, strategic installation of temporary sand fencing as vegetation establishes, installation of symbolic fencing on existing pathways, and installation of educational features like interpretive signage.
Project implementation will be broken into three phases:
1. Restoration of northern dune section, 2 acres, from 36th Street to 28th Street.
2. Restoration of the southern dune section, 1 acre, from 27th Street to 23rd Street (except vicinity of 28th Street); and
3. Restoration of the vicinity of 28th Street, 0.5 acre, following the completion of the Manhattan Strand 28th Street Subsurface Infiltration Trench Project.
Dune enhancement will occur through the removal of non-native vegetation, predominantly ice plant, and the seeding/planting of native dune species, including the City’s official flower, the Beach Evening Primrose.
The project encompasses three main goals:
Goal 1: Increase the resiliency of the shoreline through the restoration of sandy beach and foredune habitat. This project will result in 3.5 acres of healthy living shoreline that can support native, and in many cases, rare and endemic species of plants and animals. This project will also provide enhanced ecosystem services to the community; including carbon sequestration, shoreline stabilization, and storm protection. The ecosystem benefits living shorelines projects provide are not limited to a narrow time period but continue over time as the shoreline establishes, compared to hard shorelines that require maintenance and often result in the loss of sandy beach.
Goal 2: Implement “soft-scape” protection measures against sea level rise and coastal storms. Seeded and planted specialized foredune vegetation will grow and develop and begin trapping sand transported by wind. Additional trapping of sand will occur through the deployment of sand fencing. Wind-driven sand will bump into vegetation, fall, and accrete, increasing the elevation of the plant hummock over time. Subsequently, the vegetation will continue to grow and develop on top of the newly accreted vegetated sand hummocks. Because beach dunes accrete sediment being transported from the ocean, they will continue to grow concurrently with rising sea levels. This process can continue as long as the vegetation community is robust and healthy. Significantly increased resilience will be achieved through natural raising and accretion of the plant hummocks and vegetation.
Goal 3: Increase engagement of the community through enhanced beach experiences, outreach, and education. This project will help reestablish an appreciation that has been lost in the Los Angeles region of a natural, functioning beach ecosystem and the site will provide educational and recreational opportunities. In addition to reducing coastal hazards, this project will encourage nature-based education and increase community awareness of living shorelines while still allowing all other existing recreational uses of the beach to continue. As a note, the project will not impact existing recreational activities, including beach volleyball.
Monitoring and Maintenance
TBF will incorporate best available science from planning to implementation and post-restoration monitoring. Accurate and robust scientific monitoring will be a vital part of this restoration project and will be used to measure restoration success and inform adaptive management actions. TBF has extensive knowledge on developing and implementing monitoring protocols and working on restoration projects in coastal and marine environments.
Funding
TBF has already identified potential sources of funding for the project and the project is also included in regional strategic planning documents such as the Santa Monica Bay National Estuary Program’s Action Plan (Oct 2018) and its Work Plan. TBF will opportunistically apply for grants to fund all project expenses. Permitting, implementation, and post-restoration maintenance and monitoring would also be coordinated and conducted by TBF. TBF would consult with the City of Manhattan Beach and LACDBH on all project logistics, and design and implementation and would not proceed without City or County approval.
Project Schedule
Proposed project schedule, dependent on funding:
Phase 1 (northern dune restoration): 2020-2022
Phase 2 (southern dune restoration): 2022-2023
Phase 3 (dune restoration following infiltration project): TBD
PUBLIC OUTREACH/INTEREST:
On September 21, 2018, TBF coastal scientists presented to the Sustainability Task Force (STF), which was well-received and supported by STF members. Meetings with key project partners will continue to occur to finalize tasks necessary for project implementation. Additional targeted outreach to community stakeholders will be conducted via a diverse strategy of public meetings, a press release, newsletters, websites, and social media.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
Section 15333 of CEQA Guidelines provides (Class 33) exemption for the maintenance, restoration, enhancement, or protection of habitat (no greater than 5 acres) for fish, plants, or wildlife provided that:
1. There would be no significant adverse impact on endangered, rare, or threatened species or their habitat;
2. There are no hazardous materials at or around the project site that may be disturbed or removed; and
3. The project will not result in impacts that are significant when viewed in connection with the effects of past, current, or probable future projects.
The project consists of the utilization of existing sediments to passively restore and transform approximately 3.5 acres of the current beach and dunes into a sustainable coastal strand and dune habitat complex which would be resilient to sea level rise. The project would result in a beneficial impact on wildlife and would not result in the disturbance or removal of hazardous materials at the site. Furthermore, the project will not result signification impacts in combination with other projects. Therefore, this project is a Class 33 project that is categorically exempt per Section 15333 of the CEQA Guidelines.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney has reviewed this report and no legal review is necessary.
Attachments:
1. Restoration Project Scope
2. Dune Restoration Project Support Letter