Transnet National Ports Authority’s (TNPA) Dredging Services division has been very busy these days pumping sand onto Durban’s Golden Mile beaches, aimed to welcome thousands of holidaymakers this festive season.
Under the project, sand collected by their modern trailing suction hopper dredger (TSHD) Isandlwana during TNPA’s usual harbor dredging operations from the ‘sand trap’ (an area just around the outside of the southern breakwater) is then being discharged directly onto the beach via a floating under-sea pipeline.
This method of sand replenishment – in use globally but not to date on South African beaches – has provided direct nourishment to affected areas of the Durban beachfront in a fast, productive and cost-effective manner.