Stony barricade. That is the Long Beach Breakwater. It stretches 2.2 miles. This vestige of World War II protects the U.S. Navy’s Pacific Fleet. It shields from stormy seas and enemy torpedoes.
Today the Navy is gone. Critics say the Long Beach Breakwater caused surf-less beaches. These beaches are some of the least popular and most polluted.
In 1911 surfing began in California. Two men returned from Hawaii. They surfed the waves in Long Beach. The city hosted the first National Surfing and Paddleboard Championships in 1938. Construction on the Long Beach Breakwater started three years later.
The Long Beach Breakwater finished in 1949. Waves vanished. Crowds went to Huntington Beach and Seal Beach.
Now, some homeowners worry about flooding. They fear rogue waves if the Long Beach Breakwater is removed. They live in Naples Bluff Park and Belmont Shore.
The city could gain money if they changed the Long Beach Breakwater. It could gain 52 million dollars a year. Taxes and fees could bring 7 million annually.
The engineering firm Moffat and Nichol conducted a study. It will be presented to the Long Beach City Council on Monday. Many leaders hope the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will analyze dismantling part of the barrier. The Corps owns and operates the Long Beach Breakwater.
Officials said the project faces challenges. It must not affect navigation into the ports. These are the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. It must not affect offshore loading of weaponry onto Navy ships.
There are also oil islands. One was destroyed by seas during a storm in 1983. Resolving those issues will be more challenging than moving rocks. That was said by Russell Boudreau. He is the principal coastal engineer for Moffat and Nichol.
Supporters say change would revive the city’s seaside allure. U.S. Rep. Laura Richardson wants the project done within a decade. She is excited about returning waves to Long Beach. She wants to protect homes and the economic vitality of the largest port complex.
Ed Hendricks is vice chairman of Long Beach Surfrider. He said there is a big dead sea behind the Long Beach Breakwater. He would not stick a toe in it.
Complete removal is not recommended. The study offers five options. Three would reconfigure the Long Beach Breakwater. Costs range from about 10 million to 310 million dollars.
Michael Schaat directs the Cabrillo Beach Aquarium. He worries about the effect on life forms. These range from starfish to lobsters. They live on ledges and between the cracks of the rocks. He said it is a biologically rich area above and beneath the surface.
Harbor seals roll in tidal water. American black oystercatchers probe rocky crevices. Crabs scuttle into hiding. Fishermen catch barracuda and calico bass. They are in a vessel bobbing in the shadows of terminal cranes. The cranes are 400-foot-tall.
Tom Modica is the city’s project manager for the breakwater study. He said it would be difficult to balance concerns. He acknowledged a long process before any construction could begin. But he said this study starts the debate.
The Long Beach breakwater isn’t going anywhere soon. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has jurisdiction over the breakwaters. They concluded changes would be too costly. It could interfere with Navy operations. It could affect ports in Long Beach and Los Angeles. It could affect oil islands, the cruise terminal, Shoreline Marina, the Peninsula, and maritime stakeholders.
In 2018, the Corps studied six options to improve the ecosystem. Two included removing parts of the Long Beach Breakwater. A complete removal was dismissed. The agency used wave models to simulate how changes could affect infrastructure. The data showed that the T.H.U.M.S. Islands along with the Shoreline Marina, the Peninsula, and the Port of Long Beach would need additional armoring if the waves returned.
In January 2022, the Corps released its finalized study. Even partial removal wouldn’t help the environmental goal. The cost was unsustainable. It skyrocketed from 600 million to 1.4 billion dollars.
The Long Beach Breakwater was authorized in 1930. The Federal River and Harbor Act did this. It was to provide a protected anchorage for the U.S. Navy’s Pacific Fleet. It was to protect the Long Beach shoreline. People were concerned that waves would erode the shoreline. World War II was raging. The Pacific Coast was essential.
Construction began in 1941. It finished in 1949. The Corps maintains jurisdiction today. Many locals hate the breakwater. The 2000s and 2010s had “Break the Breakwater” bumper stickers. Surfers dreamed of Long Beach waves. They wanted to restore Long Beach’s moniker as the “Waikiki of Southern California.” They also wanted cleaner water.
In 1996, the Long Beach chapter of the Surfrider Foundation formed. It called for removal. The chapter’s chair said the Navy has put a nix on any activity with the breakwater.