Task Force Seeks to Replenish Beaches’ Sand

A task force of federal, state and local officials convened Monday in Marina del Rey to weigh ways to save Los Angeles County beaches, which--owing to erosion--are slowly losing the sand that made them famous worldwide.

With Las Tunas State Beach in Malibu mostly rocks and portions of Redondo Beach under water at high tide, a series of presentations made plain the urgency of finding a steady supply of sand and--perhaps more importantly--money to get that sand to the county’s 31 miles of sandy shoreline.

The two-hour meeting hardly solved either problem, with many of the 50 participants saying they first need to do several studies and organize lobbying efforts in Sacramento and Washington.

Nonetheless, panelists said that--for the first time in years--they feel they have a chance to make real headway.

“I sensed a lot of real positive energy and we’ve taken the first step at building some momentum,” said Dean Smith, executive assistant to the director at the county Department of Beaches and Harbors.

Smith chaired Monday’s meeting, which was organized after the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on July 21 passed a resolution “to seek solutions and take action to restore our beaches and coastline.” The resolution was brought by Supervisor Don Knabe, whose district includes the South Bay.

The board’s action followed a report in The Times that detailed how the sea was reclaiming beaches such as Las Tunas and Redondo--and explained that the county had finally run out of a ready supply of sand after scooping tons of it from massive construction projects dating to the 1930s.

In its July 21 resolution, the board directed the task force--which does not yet have a formal name--to “inventory the condition” of county beaches, “identify funding sources” for beach restoration and formulate a long-term maintenance plan.