Myrtle Beach Wins National Award for Beach Restoration

The City of Myrtle Beach yesterday received the Robert L. Wiegel Coastal Project Award for its beach preservation and restoration projects dating back to the 1980s.

The city initiated a three-phase plan for beach restoration in the 1980s: Phase 1 — small-scale beach scraping; Phase 2 — mediumscale nourishment by trucks using inland sand; and Phase 3 — large-scale nourishment by dredge using offshore sand.

Phases 1 and 2 were locally funded and served as interim measures (1981-1996) until a 50-year federal project could be constructed (1997 to present).

Total volumes and adjusted costs of nourishment from 1986 to early 2018 are 4,997,201 cubic yards (3,820,360m³) and ~$70.8 million ($2018), respectively.

The award was presented during the American Shore & Beach Preservation Association (ASBPA) conference at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center.

The national award is named after one of the foremost coastal engineers and is the ASBPA’s most prestigious project award.

It’s presented to a coastal project that has stood the test of time and has shown a positive environmental, social or recreational benefit.