Beach Erosion Control
What is Beach Erosion Control?
These projects prevent or reduce the transport of pollutants and sediment into the Lake. Often beach erosion is caused by inadequate stormwater control along the roads leading to the beach.
Examples of past LGA Beach Erosion Control projects:
Bixby Beach (Bolton) - 2008
A popular site for local residents, the dirt road down to the water lacked any stormwater control measures. During heavy rains, runoff concentrated on the road and washed sand off the beach area and dirt from the road into the bay. The Town DPW had to replenish it every few years. A large trench box was placed at the end of the road to direct stormwater into a large dry well and underground stormwater infiltrator chambers. The system can then infiltrate the runoff into the ground, preventing the majority of the surface water from directly discharging into the lake.
Lake Avenue Beach (Lake George Village) - 1996 & 2004
In 1996, four catch basins were installed on both sides of Lake Avenue Beach Road to help trap sediments from stormwater runoff from approximately ½ mile of paved roadway and adjoining properties. In 2004, a large Vortechnics stormwater separator was installed at the end of the road near the beach. This was done in partnership with the Village of Lake George with CT Male Engineering and Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District working on the design. In addition, a beach buffer was installed with the assistance of WSWHE BOCES and Cornell Cooperative Extension. This native plant demonstration buffer controls runoff and erosion of the beach while allowing a path for car-top boat launching. Plants along the shoreline hold the soil in place and soak up nutrients from fertilizer and other contaminants contained in the stormwater.
Gull Bay Beach (Putnam) - 1996
In 1996 a damaged culvert and an unstabilized stream bank located near Gull Bay Beach was causing continual washouts, erosion damage and sedimentation problems. Gull Bay Beach, a popular community beach north of Huletts Landing was continually washing out. The town was importing sand that was being washed into the Lake. During the Winter of 1996, the LGA provided an engineering design to solve the problem. A trench, running the entire length of the 200 foot beach was put in across the back of the beach along with a catch basin to intercept the runoff. Utilizing the plans created for the beach back in 1996 by Jarrett-Martin Engineering, the Lake George Watershed Coalition is continuing with some of the work identified in the original work outlined and subsequently updated by Jarrett Engineers.
Huddle Bay Beach (Bolton) - 2000
This project captured and infiltrated most of the stormwater running off Huddle Beach Road before it reached the beach and caused erosion into Lake George. Construction of a stone-lined roadside ditch was completed in the spring of 1999. In the spring of 2000, a runoff collection trench and dry well were installed where the road meets the beach, and the road was paved. This project formed the methodology used in the Bixby Beach project conducted in 2008.
Rogers Memorial Park (Bolton) - 1996
A drop inlet was installed in the beach parking lot to collect runoff and direct it to a drywell and a series of infiltrators under the beach. The dry well and infiltrators trap sediment and allow water to infiltrate into the sandy soil before reaching Lake George.
