Beach Sand Management

Based on the results of the regional shoreline monitoring program, we determined that a third Regional Beach Sand Project was needed. The Regional Beach Sand Project III (RBSP III) aims to address ongoing beach erosion issues in the San Diego region by replenishing sand on highly eroded beaches. The proposed project involves a programmatic long-term beach nourishment approach of dredging beach-quality sand from offshore borrow sites and placing it on receiver sites along the San Diego coastline.

SANDAG completed Phase 1 of this project in July 2025, which included preliminary planning activities encompassing all eight coastal cities in San Diego County as well as two southern Orange County cities (San Clemente and Dana Point). As of early 2026, we are seeking federal and state funding for the implementation of Phase 2: engineering and environmental activities.

In 2021, SANDAG partnered with Caltrans, the City of Encinitas, and California State Parks to launch the Cardiff State Beach Sand Replenishment project. Caltrans and SANDAG crews installed a pipeline to pump 63,000 cubic yards of dredged sand—the equivalent of 19 Olympic-sized swimming pools—from San Elijo Lagoon under the I-5 bridge onto the state beach.

The sand transfer also benefits the San Elijo Lagoon Restoration project, a partnership of SANDAG and the Nature Collective. We finished construction for the San Elijo Restoration project in spring 2022. The channel under the bridge was made deeper and wider, which will assist tidal circulation, improve the quality of water and habitats within the lagoon, and lead to greater wildlife diversity.

In 2012, SANDAG placed 1.5 million cubic yards of sand on beaches in Imperial Beach, Oceanside, Encinitas, Solana Beach, and Carlsbad. The $26 million project was funded through the California Department of Boating and Waterways and the region’s coastal cities.

With a 2009 grant from the California Department of Boating and Waterways, San Diego was chosen as one of three areas in the state to develop a Regional Sediment Management Plan. SANDAG created this plan as part of a statewide program to develop a Sediment Master Plan lead by the Coastal Sediment Management Workgroup.

The plan is a guidance and policy document. It describes quick, cost-effective, and resource-sensitive actions that can be taken to control the movement of sand, silt, and other loose materials along the coastline to prevent or reduce the wearing away of the shoreline. Its goals are to:

• Identify sediment sources that can be used to restore and maintain beaches and other areas of sediment deficit or excess
• Reduce the installation of hard shoreline structures
• Sustain recreation and tourism
• Enhance public safety
• Restore sandy coastal habitats through a consensus-driven process

SANDAG was one of the first in the state to finalize the plan, and the state government has recently reengaged this workgroup.

With a 2006 grant from the California Department of Boating and Waterways, SANDAG prepared a Sand Compatibility and Opportunistic Use Program (SCOUP), a component of the California Coastal Sediment Management Master Plan.

The Sediment Management Master Plan assesses California's coastal sediment management needs on a system-wide basis through collaboration with federal, state, and local agencies and nongovernmental organizations. One of the goals of the plan is to develop a process for managing regional sand issues.

The SCOUP provides protocols and templates for a sand program which allows jurisdictions to find and use compatible sand sources on their beaches when it becomes available. 

SANDAG has worked with the cities of Oceanside, Coronado, Encinitas, Imperial Beach, and Solana Beach to develop environmental documentation enabling them to obtain federal, state, and local permits for placement of sand on their local beaches.

In 2001, our Regional Beach Sand Project pumped 2.2 million cubic yards of sand onto 12 badly eroded local beaches. SANDAG’s monitoring program studied how sand moved from the initial 12 beaches and spread along the region's 70-mile coastline. The U.S. Navy, the California Department of Boating and Waterways, and the region’s coastal cities funded the $18 million project.