KENAI, Alaska (AP) - A new report by the Army Corps of Engineers states the cost of alleviating the Alaska city of Kenai’s erosion along a nearly 1-mile (1.6-kilometer) bluff would exceed its economic benefit, but can still be done.
The Corps will hold two public meetings about the report, the first on July 5 with the Kenai City Council and the second for the general public on July 6, The Peninsula Clarion reported (https://bit.ly/2sJDzTT ).
The report compares the costs and benefits of six possible ways to halt the bluff erosion, a goal the Corps and Kenai have been formally pursuing together since 1999.
This report is based on the value that could be lost over the next 50 years if the erosion continues. The Corps estimates $22.58 million worth of land, structures and recreational opportunities would be lost.
The Corps’ ideas for stopping the erosion include moving the Kenai River mouth, relocating the bluff-top buildings, two plans to decrease the bluff’s slope by moving material from its top to its base and protecting the base with rock. But the plan the report calls its preference is one that would build a rock berm at the bluff’s base and allow falling material to naturally fill in behind it.
The report states this plan would have a negative net value of $463,000, much lower than the other plans’ negative values.
The bluff is eroding at a rate of 3 feet (1 meter) per year.
___
Information from: (Kenai, Alaska) Peninsula Clarion, https://www.peninsulaclarion.com
Please read our comment policy before commenting.