Surf enthusiasts wonder if a nearshore nourishment trial will work at Maroochydore, amid a plea for sand to be placed at neighbouring Alexandra Headland.
Spectators have been impressed by a dredging vessel’s unusual rainbow spraying technique during the past couple of weeks, while it dispersed 40,000 cubic metres of sand into an area about 300m off the Maroochydore shoreline.
It’s hoped the $600,000 trial will pave the way for more works to restore the battered beach.
A prominent local surfer, along with the boss of a neighbouring surf club, wondered whether it would work.
Maroochy Surf School director Grant Thomas said the sand could end up drifting north to the Maroochy River mouth, instead of settling on the beach.
“The natural sand flow is from south to north,” he said.
“The sandbag wall (at the river mouth) might catch a heap of it.
“It could be a masterstroke … but I spoke to one guy (from a pioneering surfing family) and he wondered whether the sand would even hit the beach, because it’s being dropped a fair way out.”
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He said there was minimal impact after a week of activity.
“We’ve just had a lot of sandy water,” he said. “It will be interesting to see what it (the sand) does. It might come into the beach, but it might end up on the northern side.”
The sand was transported from Moreton Bay to Maroochydore.
“It seems like there was a lot of money for it, with an unknown outcome,” Mr Thomas said.
“They have grabbed it from the Spitfire Channel and that’s where all the sand comes from anyway.
“They are basically speeding up the process.
“My feeling is that you don’t disturb with nature.”
Sand from the Maroochy River is also pumped, via pipeline, to Maroochydore Beach every couple of years.
The general manager of Alex Surf Club, Ashley Robinson, said Maroochydore received plenty of attention but nearby Alexandra Headland Beach “clearly needs sand”.
He said the club may have to cancel events.
“We are in dire need of some sand but … the sand is getting pumped north of here,” he said.
“The Hayden Kenny Classic will be difficult to hold (in early December) because of a lack of beach, which is also a safety hazard for our patrols as we cannot access north of the clubhouse.
“I cannot understand why we continually miss out on sand pumping when the pipe goes all the way to the (Alex) skate park but is never used.”
A Sunshine Coast Council spokesperson said the dredging vessel was strategically placed.
“The sand is being released in a specific location to try and increase sand on Maroochydore Beach, while complying with our environment approval.”
“This approval specified that an exclusion zone was required between the placement area and the reef that sits off Alexandra Headland.
“The reef is also the reason why we are unable to place sand directly in front of Alexandra Headland beach.”
The spokesperson said Maroochydore Beach was losing sand naturally and council generally replenished the area every two years, by dredging Maroochy River and pumping the sand directly onto Maroochydore beach via a pipeline.
“Even after these campaigns, sand eventually migrates north, which is why we do it every two years.”
“One of the goals of the nearshore nourishment trial is to see where the sand goes, however, we expect that sand will naturally migrate onto the beach for a period of time before heading north as it naturally does.”
The spokesperson said council would try to address the situation at Alex.
“Acknowledging the concerns of the Alexandra Headland beach community, we will investigate utilising a second booster pump to sit near the southern portion of Maroochydore Beach, in an attempt to push the sand further down to Alexandra Headland beach.”
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