7.6 The Tweed River Entrance Sand Bypassing Project

1. because during 1950's shipping was harder due to the fact of sandbars that were forming across the river mouth.


2. The continual build-up of sand on the southern side of the breakwater eventually caused the river mouth to once again silt up. It became apparent that continually extending the breakwaters was not the solution to providing a safe entrance to the Tweed River. In an effort to create a safe river entrance and solve the problem of the breaches immediately north of the Tweed being deprived of the natural supply of the sand, the accumulating sand at the river mouth was periodically dredged and trucked to the Gold Coast where it was used for beach nourishment.


3. During the 1950s the entrance to the Tweed River, which is at the southern end of the Gold Coast, became a hazard to shipping because of sandbars that were forming across the river mouth.

4. This was an expensive solution and one which would need to occur continually in order to maintain the sand supply to the beaches and the safety of the river entrance for boats. A more efficient long-term solution was required.

5. The Tweed River Entrance Sand Bypassing Project (TRESBP) provides an example of how people can implement coastal management schemes that recreate the natural processes operating along the coast. The project also involved the cooperation of state and local governments in responding to the community's concerns and opinions.

6.  (TRESBP) The Tweed River Entrance Sand Bypassing Project is a very smart thing that Australia has done. This is because the planning, construction and effects of the TRESBP was so well thought out and that so much research was done into the project such as refering to coastal managers, authorities, geographers, etc. And the solution is simple and effective with the idea that it measures which beach needs the sand the most and places the pumped sand there.

7. 


8. The changes occurred at the mouth of the Tweed River since 1962 have been dramatic. The most prominent thing that has changed is the beach becoming larger with larger amounts of sand being placed on the beach. Over time the sand has not been transported away from the beach into the river but instead now is all being retained within the beach being held by the breakwater.


9. The breakwater length in 1962 would of been about 40 meters long. In 1994 it has been extended to about the length of 250 meters.