Goleta Beach Receives 450 Truckloads of Sediment
Clearing the debris basins before incoming storms requires finding a place to put the stuff. Since March 20, Goleta Beach County Park has received 450 truckloads from San Antonio Creek Debris Basin above Tuckers Grove, as well as about 1,500 truckloads from the debris basins in Montecito filling with material post–Thomas Fire. According to Public Works Director Scott McGolpin, the material in San Antonio was “ideal for beach deposits,” plus the debris basin drained to the Goleta Slough.
Altogether, clearing South County’s various debris basins to ready them for the next storm moved about 28,000 cubic yards of sediment to Goleta Beach, which is only used when the upland options become full, said Maureen Spencer, the department’s operations and environmental manager. The operation at the beach includes sediment and water samples before and during the dumping, Public Works announced in a press release. Water quality as of March 31, the day after the first operation ended, was within state and county standards.
Last weekend’s storm brought another two inches and more rock and silt sluicing off the hillsides and burn scars, and a new dumping operation is ongoing.
At the Santa Barbara Independent, our staff continues to cover every aspect of the COVID-19 pandemic. Support the important work we do by making a
