Resolution 2019-31009 RESOLUTION NO. 2019-31009
A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION
OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, SUPPORTING
UNITED STATES SENATE BILL, S. 2460, WHICH WOULD
AMEND SECTION 935 OF THE WATER RESOURCES
DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 1986 TO FACILITATE THE USE OF
FOREIGN OFFSHORE SAND IN BEACH NOURISHMENT
PROJECTS; URGING THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS TO
EXPEDITE AND FUND THE STUDY TO ALLOW FOREIGN
SAND TO BE USED IN BEACH NOURISHMENT PROJECTS
IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY; AND, DIRECTING THE CITY
CLERK TO TRANSMIT A COPY OF THIS RESOLUTION TO
THE MEMBERS OF THE FLORIDA CONGRESSIONAL
DELEGATION, THE SECRETARY OF THE ARMY, THE
GOVERNOR OF FLORIDA, AND THE LOCAL AND COUNTY
MAYORS OF COASTAL COMMUNITIES THROUGHOUT
MIAMI-DADE, BROWARD, MONROE, PALM BEACH,
MARTIN, AND ST. LUCIE COUNTIES.
WHEREAS, beaches and dunes serve as a vital buffer between coastal
infrastructure and the destructive forces of ocean waves and surge during storm events;
and
WHEREAS, beach renourishment adds sand to the coastal system, helps keep
the erosive power of strong waves from reaching dunes and structures, and buffers
against the effects of sea level rise and climate change, thereby protecting coastal
properties and the coastal environment; and
WHEREAS, beach renourishment has been an ongoing practice in southeast
Florida since the late 1970s, as part of the Dade County Beach Erosion Control and
Hurricane Protection Project, providing essential economic, environmental, and
recreational benefits to coastal communities; and
WHEREAS, throughout the region, twenty-four federal and nonfederal beach
nourishment projects provide storm damage reduction to infrastructure as well as
incidental recreational opportunities; and
WHEREAS, Miami-Dade County, the State of Florida, and the Federal
government are cost-sharing partners in the Dade County Beach Erosion Control and
Hurricane Protection Project ("Project"); and
WHEREAS, Miami-Dade County is running out of dependable, economical, and
environmentally practicable sand sources; and
WHEREAS, Section 935 of the Water Resources Development Act of 1986
("WRDA 1986") states that the Army Corps can only use domestic sources of sand for
renourishment efforts under the Project, unless the Secretary of the Army provides
written certification that domestic sources are not available for environmental or
economic reasons; and
WHEREAS, in March 2016, the Army Corps completed a Limited Reevaluation
Report and Environmental Assessment with a Finding of No Significant Impact with
updated economics to justify potential alternative sand sources for future renourishment
projects to utilize new sand sources, which include Bahamas sand; and
WHEREAS, the option to import offshore sand from the Bahamas to expedite
beach nourishment projects in Miami Beach and throughout Miami-Dade County is
important because the sand may be closer to the quality of the sand on South Florida's
beaches than some of the alternatives listed by the Army Corps, including sand located
in Federal waters adjacent to other counties; and
WHEREAS, foreign offshore sources may have a lower cost to import than
purchasing sand from approved upland sources, and there may be fewer impacts on
roads, such as reduced quality-of-life impacts resulting from truck traffic and fewer
carbon emissions from trucks hauling the sand; and
WHEREAS, the City of Miami Beach ("City"), Florida, supports a recent decision
by the federal government to study the benefits of replenishing Florida beaches with
foreign sand; and
WHEREAS, on September 11, 2019, Florida Senator Marco Rubio introduced bill
S. 2460 to amend WRDA 1986 with respect to the acquisition of beach fill to eliminate
the restriction against foreign offshore sand; and
WHEREAS, it is in the best interest of the City to support S. 2460 to eliminate the
restriction against foreign offshore sand, and to urge the United States Congress to
expedite and fund the study to evaluate the benefits of replenishing Florida beaches
with foreign sand.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT DULY RESOLVED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY
COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, that the Mayor and City
Commission hereby support United States Senate bill, S. 2460, which would amend
Section 935 of the Water Resources Development Act of 1986 to eliminate the
restrictions therein in order to facilitate the use of foreign offshore sand in beach
nourishment projects; urge the United States Congress to expedite and fund the study
to allow foreign offshore sand to be used in beach renourishment projects in Miami-
Dade County; and, direct the City Clerk to transmit a copy of this resolution to the
members of the Florida congressional delegation, the Secretary of the Army, the
Governor of Florida, and the local and county mayors of coastal communities
throughout Miami Dade, Broward, Monroe, Palm Beach, Martin, and St. Lucie counties.
PASSED AND ADOPTED this -n day of 9P-Ie046€J , 2019
ATTEST: X.: er'
Dan Gelber, Mayor
itthh
Rafa E. Gra do, City Clerk
(sponsored by Mayor Dan Gelber)
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APPROVED AS TO
FORM & LANGUAGE
& FOR EXECUTION
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City Attorney Date