Upham Erosion Video
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This 1-minute movie shows daily images from October 1996, four months after nourishment, to Apr 1998, 22 months after nourishment. The camera is looking south along St Pete Beach. Note the Don CeSar on the horizon. At the beginning, notice the exposed downdrift seawall. Rapid erosion from the project area results in downdrift deposition. Note the shoreline advance at the downdrift seawall.

During the second winter season, several storm events cause significant shoreline erosion at the public park. During this winter, the erosion rate was 1.4 ft/day (erosion rates are typically measured in ft/yr).

Less than 2 years after nourishment, 83% of the beach fill eroded from Upham; however, the downdrift beaches benefited from this erosion. Upham Beach is an excellent example of a “feeder beach” where sediment is placed on the updrift end of a region intended to receive fill. The fill erodes rapidly from the placement area, but supplies the downdrift beaches.

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