A Rapid Compatibility Analysis of Potential Offshore Sand Sources for Beaches of the Santa Barbara Littoral Cell

The beaches of the Santa Barbara Littoral Cell, which are narrow as a result of either natural and/or anthropogenic factors, may benefit from nourishment. Sand compatibility is fundamental to beach nourishment success and grain size is the parameter often used to evaluate equivalence. Only after understanding which sand sizes naturally compose beaches in a specific cell, especially the smallest size that remains on the beach, can the potential compatibility of source areas, such as offshore borrow sites, be accurately assessed. This study examines sediments on the beach and in the nearshore (5–20m depth) for the entire Santa Barbara Littoral Cell east of Point Conception. A digital bed sediment camera, the Eyeball©, and spatial autocorrelation technique were used to determine sediment grain size. Here we report on whether nearshore sediments are comparable and compatible with beach sands of the Santa Barbara Littoral Cell.