Dear Surfrider and Managed Retreat Ideologs, 

The sand for the beaches comes from rivers and flows North to South. River sand outflows have been diminished as has the North to South sand flow – it is blocked by harbors and jettys. Look at the North side of Oceanside harbor vs the South side, same with the Newport Harbor. Thus to get meaningful sand on the beach you need to dredge from offshore and from lagoons. 

Very little beach sand comes from the bluffs and their erosion is killing people. The bluffs would have to retreat many yards all at once to put meaningful sand on the beach (Leucadia bluffs are losing ~2 inches per year on average but can dump more all at once). You all know this is all settled science so drop the seawall deception. Why does Cardiff and Carlsbad campgrounds have no sand? They have no seawalls. And why does The Scripps Institute of Oceanography have a seawall and sand? Should they build it up higher or tear it down?

The Surfrider, The CA Coastal Comission and the like have been delaying and blocking meaningful beach replenishment efforts every step of the way. Oceanfront owners in Malibu offered to pay 100% of the costs to put sand on the beach for decades and spent $17,000,000 in court with all the managed retreaters until the effort failed. Thus the public got screwed – Broad Beach is forever Narrow Beach. 

I have a letter you all sent to the Army Corps of Engineers as part of your constant efforts to block, delay and reduce sand eligibility for Leucadia – Encinitas.  Now Grandview past Beacons CANNOT get sand even if the money was donated and the material was flowing. You complained on my behalf that too much sand was proposed and without tearing out the seawalls as part of the sand replenishment project – your managed retreat goals for the townsfolk could not be met.  

Because most of Leucadia is excluded from sand eligibility; oceanfront homeowners cannot pool resources to significantly fund sand replenishment. Your wedge killed any chance of any sand on the beach paid for by the evil homeowners like me. You cannot get a binding agreement  if some areas will get no sand. And if this gets fixed you will delay, apply red tape with the CA CC and smother it to death in court.  

SB1090 had to use the word “seawall” in the bill because without it you and the CC would block any cave fill, notch infill, or 5 foot base toe because you would classify as a “seawall.” 

With no sand per your MO you have massive bluff failures and then giant emergency seawalls. Why do you love giant seawalls so much? The less sand we have the more giant seawalls go up. Your blatant misrepresentation of SB1090 is an easy fix but once that is done you and the CA CC will demand more studies and cook up more issues. I get it; your payroll depends on fulfilling the out of area paymaster aims – engineered coastal collapse at all costs. 

I grew up in a surfing family and everyone I know who understands how your organization has degenerated would like for you all to stop pretending you have our interest at heart. You do not speak for me or many other surfers I know. 

Dear Public, 
Thank the Surfrider and the local supportive politicians for working hard to keep sand off the beach. Based on my experience here over the last 26 years they have done an excellent job. 

Oceanfront homeowners are totally blocked from pooling resources to help significantly fund putting sand on the beach. Without your help to get the politicians fearful for their jobs NOTHING will happen other than sound bites and “studies”.

Sand replenishment and bluff erosion mitigation is not coming anytime soon unless you demand it. It could start happening tomorrow if they wanted it to.

We should not need to do all this to get public safety standards to be part of policy decisions.

Please visit  and sign the petition.   https://socalbluffalliance.com

Regards,
Charlie McDermott