What we do
Coastal Accretion Design
Stabilizer tubes placed along the nearshore, positioned so the energy already in the waves does the work: sediment settles, sand builds up, and the beach re-forms its own profile instead of being trucked back in.
The problem
Rising seas
Sea level has risen roughly 8 inches (20 cm) since the late nineteenth century according to the IPCC, and the rate is increasing. Coastlines retreat faster as a result.
Interrupted sediment
Inlets and engineered channels change how rivers deliver sand. Sediment is pushed out to sea faster than the coast can replace it, so the beach loses its supply.
Repeat rebuilding
Conventional responses — dredging, importing sand, rebuilding barriers — have to be repeated, and the cost of that cycle recurs for as long as the erosion does.
The approach
Materials and placement
Placement is decided by modelling: wave behaviour, sediment transport and shoreline change are simulated for the site before anything is installed. Early deployments used geotextile tubes along the intertidal zone; current work uses enhanced materials including basalt-infused geotextiles.
The design method is held as a trade secret. Spacing and material specifications vary by site and are [TBD] here pending published technical documentation.
Shoreline recovery and protection systems at Basalt International (opens in a new tab)What a wider beach gives back
Habitat
A wider beach gives dune and marsh vegetation somewhere to establish, and returns nesting and feeding ground to birds, turtles and beach-dwelling species.
Coastal protection
Beach width absorbs and disperses wave and storm energy before it reaches what is behind it.
Water quality
Waves breaking further out travel longer before the shoreline, giving sediment time to settle; coastal vegetation filters what is left.
Public use
A restored beach returns space for walking, swimming and watching the coast — the reason most people care about it in the first place.
Where it is appropriate
Sites with an active sediment supply, measurable retreat and room for a profile to re-form. Each shoreline is assessed on its own terms; the system is not offered as a universal fix, and outcomes depend on conditions specific to the site.