Swash has created a series of maps showing sand bypass and transfer systems around Australia, from east coast to west.
Produced with input from peers, local experts and academics, the maps pool a unique collective body of industry knowledge to deliver an invaluable shared resource.
Download the maps
Each map is available for download in high resolution.
We encourage everyone to print out copies and put them up in their office for quick reference.
- Australia-wide sand bypass and transfer systems map
- Australia-wide sand bypass and transfer systems quick guide (without map)
- South east Qld and northern NSW sand bypass and transfer systems map
- Adelaide to Sydney sand bypass and transfer systems map
- Western Australia sand bypass and transfer systems map
Our aim is to update these maps periodically, so they continue to be a relevant current reference.
A quick summary of the learnings
Our founder, Damian, published a blog on LinkedIn that looks in more detail at the learnings from these maps, including some useful categorisations around how sand is collected and discharged.
If you have a potential project on the radar, we recommend reading that blog.
To re-publish just the big picture here, however:
- There are more than 35 regular sand bypass and transfer systems operating Australia wide.
- More than 3,600,000 m3 of sand is shifted annually through these systems.
- West Australia (14) and south-east Queensland (9) have the most systems, followed closely by Victoria (7).
Criteria for inclusion
The criteria for including a sand bypass and transfer system in our maps was:
- Material is sand
- Sand is placed on shore or in surf zone for beach nourishment
- >10,000m3 is relocated on an annual or frequent basis (not ad hoc).
Naturally, there are many other small and large systems and locations where sand is relocated on an ad-hoc basis, but for the purposes of clarity it made sense to devise a framework like the above.
Maps by region
For those who want to concentrate more closely on just one of the areas that make up the national map, here’s a little more detail on each below – plus links to the original LinkedIn posts if you want to read people’s original feedback.
South east Qld and northern NSW
This one was first cab off the rank. As we noted at the time, most industry people we’d chatted to in south east Queensland and northern NSW knew of the Tweed River Entrance Sand Bypassing Project and the Gold Coast Seaway.
But some of the other nine sand bypass-transfer systems operating annually between Noosa and Newcastle are less familiar.
Adelaide to Sydney
Next up, we worked on the southern coastline. Again, we got a lot of useful feedback and questions around what we did and didn’t include, and a few new pieces of information eventually found their way onto the finished map.
Western Australia
Finally, we put together the Western Australia coast line map.
As before, industry peers were generous with their time and input, opening up the conversation to colleagues, referencing historical documents for further context and helping me to clarify my objectives.
Get in touch
These maps are intended to show the sand bypass and transfer systems that are currently in place and which meet my criteria for inclusion.
If you’d like to talk more about any of these projects or a new project, please get in touch or connect with me on LinkedIn.
