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A Million Cubic Yards Of Sand To Renourish Eroded Brevard Beaches

Satellite Beach. Photo by Amy Green
Satellite Beach. Photo by Amy Green

Hurricanes Irma and Matthew are prompting a $17 million beach renourishment effort in Brevard County.

More than a million cubic yards of sand will replenish eroded beaches from Cape Canaveral to Melbourne Beach.

Liz Fiocchi of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says the effort is aimed at boosting tourism and protecting the habitat for endangered species like sea turtles.

"A million cubic yards of sand is about the same size of sand, that big golf ball that is at the Epcot Center? So if you're trying to visualize a quantity that's how much material will be placed along the beach."

The effort is scheduled to get underway later this month. It should be completed by the end of April, in time for sea turtle nesting season.

Amy Green covered the environment for WMFE until 2023. Her work included the 2020 podcast DRAINED.