Longshore drift continually erodes Adelaide's southern beaches and causes sand build up along its northern beaches. Two sand pumping pipelines were installed to enable transfer of sand back to the southern beaches without the need for carting. The Glenelg-Kingston Park pipeline pumps an average of 100,000m3 of sand per year; the Torrens Outlet to West Beach pipeline is currently under maintenance.
Beach renourishment
Method: Sand bypass/backpass
Sand source: Same sediment compartment
Sand volume (m2): 100,000/year
Sand placement: Dune area
Frequency of renourishment: Yearly
Date of first renourishment: 2013
Date of last renourishment: 2022
Approach
Beach renourishment
Geographic context
Bay
Organisation responsible
SA Government
Primary objective
Coastal protection
Coastal hazard
Erosion, Sea-level rise, Storms, Flooding
Asset vulnerable
Built, Recreational, Natural
Length of coastline targeted (m)
28000
Date of completion
Ongoing since 2013
Cost ($AUD)
$23 million
Source of project funding
State government
Project approvals needed
State
Sand pumping along Adelaide’s coast – SA Department of Environment and Water
Project images © Copyright SA Department for Environment and Water 2022.