(c) straight sand fence with 1.5-meter-perpendicular side spurs erected at 15- 

 meter intervals in the North Carolina experiments. All fences were installed 

 parallel to the shoreline. Over a 9-month period, he found sand accumulation 

 highest in the straight fence section. 



Savage and Woodhouse (1968) furthered the dune building processes by using 

 multiple lifts of sand fencing to construct larger dunes. After the first fence 

 had filled with sand, a second fence was constructed two-thirds of the distance 

 up the seaward face of the accumulation. A third fence was erected after the 

 second had filled, etc. Over a 39-month observation period, three lifts of 

 fencing trapped an average of 0.75 cubic meter per linear meter per month. 

 These experiments demonstrated that sand trapping could be sustained with suc- 

 cessive lifts of fencing. 



The North Carolina experiments also assessed the sand-trapping capabilities 

 of planted American beachgrass. Beachgrass plots were planted at spacings of 

 40 by 50 centimeters and 60 by 60 centimeters to a width of 24 meters. Although 

 the plot with closer spacing initially trapped more sand, total sand accumulation 

 after 37 months was nearly the same for both spacings. In comparison, the 

 American beachgrass (40- by 50-centimeter spacing) trapped 0.70 cubic meter per 

 meter per month, nearly the same rate trapped by the multiple lifts of sand 

 fencing (Savage and Woodhouse, 1968). 



c. Sand Stabilization on Cape Cod . The earliest example of the use of 

 beach grass for sand stabilization in the United States was on Cape Cod. 

 Between 1830 and 1839 more than 550 hectares of land near Provincetown (Fig. 

 1) was planted to restabilize areas destroyed by foresting and cattle grazing. 



In 1962, the Great East Coast Storm of March 1962 caused extensive damage 

 along the Atlantic seaboard. Following the storm, there was increased interest 

 in dune restoration on Cape Cod. Several trial installations of sand fencing 

 and beachgrass plantings were made by State and Federal agencies and private 

 groups (Zak, 1967; U.S. Army Engineer Division, New England, 1968). A summary 

 of these projects is included as Appendix A. 



II. DESCRIPTION OF THE STUDY AREA 



1. Geography and Geomorphology . 



Nauset Beach, a highly scenic 32-kilometer stretch of sandy beach, is located 

 on the "forearm" of the compound spit of Cape Cod (Fig. 1). The shoreline of 

 Cape Cod is composed of unconsolidated sand, gravel, clay, and boulder deposited 

 by retreating glaciers; bedrock is 122 to 152 meters below sea level. The uncon- 

 solidated shoreline is easily eroded by waves, tidal currents, and winds. Relic 

 marine scarps or cliffs 18 to 30 meters high are located between the Highland 

 Light Life Saving Station southeast of Provincetown and the abandoned U.S. Coast 

 Guard Station at the north end of Nauset Beach (Fig. 1). These cliffs retreat 

 at a rate of about 0.6 to 1.2 meters per year. Sands from the cliffs are carried 

 by waves in both north and south directions (Zeigler, 1960). Sands transported 

 north have created the Provincetown hook; those moved south have formed Nauset 

 Beach and Monbmoy Island (Fig. 1). The Nauset Beach area includes a series of 

 barrier beaches which shelter Nauset Bay, Salt Pond Bay, Nauset Harbor, Pleasant 

 Bay, and Chatham Harbor. Nauset Harbor connects with the ocean through a migrat- 

 ing inlet which divides the bar into two spits, the north spit and the south spit 

 (Fig. 2). The experimental project is located on the south spit. 



