Beach Replenishment
There are two main reasons for replenishing a beach. As briefly discussed above in the beach restoration section, the first would be to increase the recreational space along the shore, thus allowing tourists and locals to enjoy the coastline. Attractive sandy beaches bring much needed business to islands which depend upon tourists to increase their economy. The second reason is to ensure that the beach continues to act as a first line of defense against coastal erosion. The advantage of a wide beach is that it dissipates wave energy.
The usage of the beach, type of sand and expected sea conditions will determine the type of material used for beach replenishment. Many times it is necessary to import sand from another location (usually where there is an accretion deposit, or imported from another island) to replenish the beach. This allows us to build a wider, and “higher” beach.