Summarising the TRESB Project

1. during the 1950's the entrance to the tweed river. which is at the southern end of the gold coast, became a hazzard to shipping because of sandbars that were forming across the river mouth. the easy solution to this problem was to construct breakwaters to stabalise the river entrance and help keep it clear of sand. although this solution initially fixed the problem for shipping, it had to be extended again due to firther sand build up.

2. in an effort to create a safer river entrance and solve the problem of the beaches immediately north of the Tweed being deprived of the natural supply of sand, the accumulating sand at the river mouth was periodically dregded and trucked to the gold coast where it was used for beach nourishment. although this solution was effective and still is effective it also comes at a price.

3. the tweed river bypassing project provides an example of how people can implement coastal management schemes that re-create the natural processes operating along the coast. the project also involved the cooperation of state and local governments in responding to the communities concerns and opinions. to date it is one of the most successful coastal management strategies implemented in australia. the entrance the to the Tweed River and the beach above it are the two primary aspects of the location that have been heavily affected. i believe that the attempt to remove the build up of sand at the entrance of the the Tweed River heads is a success although it is still very costly. eventually a better long term solution will need to be found.