Sand for Trash
In response to a need for sand on beaches, a potentially beneficial program of exchanging sand for trash was initiated. The program concept was to truck San Diego trash to La Paz County landfill and return Arizona desert sand to San Diego beaches in the return trip. A demonstration program to test the practical validity of the concept was conducted. The project consisted of the transport of 700 cubic yards of sand from Arizona to Oceanside, California. The purpose of the demonstration was to determine if desert sand was acceptable beach nourishment.
Grain size tests indicated that the desert sand and Oceanside Beach sand have similar grain size, although desert sand is more angular.
Acceptability determinations include monitoring of the sand fill to determine its behavior on the beach and polling the neighborhood response to the project.
A public poll in regard to the project indicated that the public rated the desert sand as high quality and stated the project should be continued. The public indicated that the amount of sand on the beach influences beach use.
The project demonstrated that the desert sand is a viable material for beach nourishment. The public supported the concept of linking sand replenishment with trash disposal as a practical and logical method of solving two regional problems.
Client
La Paz County Landfill
1108 Joshua Avenue
Parker, AZ 95344
