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In response to concerns voiced by fishermen, environmentalists and surfers, the Army Corps of Engineers will notch only three jetties, instead of the six originally planned, as part of the Loch Arbour to Elberon beach replenishment project, according to a news release from Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr.

The announcement came after a meeting held yesterday by Pallone and representatives of the Army Corps and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. That meeting was a follow-up to a prior meeting in April that Pallone hosted with concerned citizens after the Army Corps released their initial draft proposal for the replenishment project.

Surfers, fishermen and environmentalists had held a protest at the Deal Lake Flume in March [above] against notching the six jetties from Loch Arbour to Elberon. The 200 people in attendance expressed their concerns that notching jetties cuts off access for fishermen and creates dangerous currents for surfers. Concern was also expressed that sand from the project would block the Deal Lake Flume, an outfall pipe running between the lake and the ocean which regulates the height of the lake.

The three jetties the Army Corps has decided not to notch are at the end of Cedar Avenue in Allenhurst, Whitehall Avenue in Deal and Roseld Avenue in Deal, according to the release.

For the three jetties that will be notched, there was also discussion at yesterday’s meeting of constructing shallower notches than originally planned to allow access across the notches during low tide. The three jetties in Deal that will be notched are located at Phillips Avenue, the Deal Casino and South of Deal Esplanade near Marine Place.

“I agree with the concerns that many have voiced with respect to notching the groins in this area and the impacts that it may have on recreational fishing,” said Pallone. [Jetties are also called groins.] “This new plan is a compromise with the Army Corps. I want to thank all the fishermen and other residents who took the time to submit comments and voice their concerns throughout this process.”

The Army Corps also agreed to install an electronic gate at the Deal Lake Flume which would allow the outfall to be cleared efficiently if it were to become blocked by sand. Those at yesterday’s meeting agreed that there was no need to extend the Deal Lake Flume farther into the ocean, according to the release. Instead, there would be improved monitoring of the sand placement by the Corps during the project to avoid any excessive placement of sand in the area of the flume.

Yesterday’s meeting also confirmed that the Army Corps will insist that towns maintain existing beach access points and parking areas and will explore the possibility of new access points in the project area from Lake Takanassee to Deal Lake, the release stated.

The contract for the Elberon to Loch Arbour Beach Replenishment Project is expected to be awarded in October or November 2014 and work will start soon after, weather permitting, according to the release.

The roughly 3.5 mile proposed Elberon to Loch Arbour project calls for the placement of about 4.5 million cubic yards of sand and the modification of the jetties to allow for the movement of sediment, as well as modifications to 16 outfalls to ensure their continued operation after the beach berm is created, according to a news release from the Army Corps.

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