Kuhio Beach sand
replenishment
delayed until fall

Answer: The project has been put off until fall, after south swells die down, said Sam Lemmo, administrator of the state Office of Conservation and Coastal Lands.

The state Department of Land and Natural Resources intends to pump sand from about 2,000 yards offshore and use it to replenish Kuhio Beach from the Kapahulu Groin to the Waikiki Beach Center and Police Substation.

The $500,000 project, all of which will be on state land, will take about 30 days.

American Marine was chosen as the contractor for the work, but has not been issued a notice to proceed because getting necessary state and federal permits took longer than expected, Lemmo said.

Because the project will move sand from offshore to the beach through floating pipes, it has to be done during seasons when the surf is lower.

The project was slated to happen last fall but was postponed for testing of water currents. Surfers, including George Downing representing Save Our Surf, worried that the sand would return to the ocean and alter surf spots.

Fluorescent dye tests were conducted that determined that sand eroding off the beach will move along shore toward the Royal Hawaiian and not affect surf spots.

Even proponents of beach replenishment admit that most of the sand will return to Mamala Bay after a few years. But they say the cost and benefits are worth it because of the value of a wider beach to tourism.

Beaches normally grow and shrink with the seasons, said Chip Fletcher, head of the coastal geology department at the University of Hawaii.

Since "Waikiki is an economic engine for the state," replenishing Kuhio Beach can be seen as an investment like re-roofing a house or painting the walls, Fletcher said.

A total of 248,635 cubic yards of sand was added to Kuhio Beach between 1939 and 2000. The last major project was 33 years ago.