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Sand fencing to be installed along 3-miles of Okaloosa Island public beach

On Saturday, November 6, 2021, the Okaloosa County Tourism Department, in partnership with Trees on the Coast, will be installing 10,600 feet of sand fencing along 3-miles of Okaloosa Island public beach, from El Matador condos to Beasley Park. Pre-existing sand fencing allowed the dunes to build, but recent storm damage and erosions has destroyed […]

SOURCE: Alex Fogg, Okaloosa Tourist Development Department

On Saturday, November 6, 2021, the Okaloosa County Tourism Department, in partnership with Trees on the Coast, will be installing 10,600 feet of sand fencing along 3-miles of Okaloosa Island public beach, from El Matador condos to Beasley Park.

  • Pre-existing sand fencing allowed the dunes to build, but recent storm damage and erosions has destroyed and covered a large portion of that fencing.

The fencing will assist with dune restoration while mitigating impacts that have been made to nesting sea turtles, piping plovers (👈 that’s a bird btw) and other nesting birds in the area.

  • The dune stabilization provides additional wildlife habitat as well as protection for upland structures during storm events.

According to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, sand fences can also assist dune vegetation and placement of beach compatible sand in rebuilding sand dunes by trapping windblown sand.

SOURCE: Alex Fogg, Okaloosa Tourist Development Department

Standard fencing used in dune restoration projects consists of wooden slats wired together with space between the slats as originally designed for snow fences.

  • These fences are recommended to have a 40% open space to 60% closed space ratio for most effective sand trapping.
  • Sand fences are usually 2 to 4 feet high.

Sand Fencing Project Map Overview

The project is funded by Okaloosa County Tourist Development and a National Fish and Wildlife Foundation grant, and will install 2,046 posts with the help of over one hundred community volunteers.

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Community Comments

“Very glad to see this project going through,we don’t live here but we brought our bikes here from misssouri and drove over to 30A to ride”
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“I suggest revising this statement: "doubling the number of travel lanes from the current four to six" since doubling four does not yield six.”
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“No there was never one here.”
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“Sad that I know him and had no idea!”
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“One of the most important issue regarding this matter is: was this x-con provided with an opportunity to learn a trade while locked up for 327 months or was he...”
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“Whatever happened to innocent until proven guilty? I seriously question the integrity of the yellow media and low-intelligence commenters for spewing such damagaing rhetoric before this case has even been...”
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“I take it that he only did half of 27 years which is 13 1/2 years .He apparently missed his inmate friends. What made him think he could get away...”
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“How can we get this started at Bluewater ? yeah Mrs Crist , still loving and making a difference in children’s lives .”
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“This is such an awesome idea! Ms. Crist was my daughter Valerie's 2nd grade teacher when Valerie attended Bluewater Elementary School! Ms. Crist was born to teach!! Nellie Bogar, Youth...”
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“I have been in the charter industry for nearly 20yrs, I own a successful mulit-boat fishing company, I teach the FISHING CLASS at Destin Highschool and I am also the...”
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