BEACH CHANGES AT LONG BEACH ISLAND, NEW JERSEY, 1962-73 
by 
Martin C. Miller, David G. Aubrey, and Joseph Karpen 
I. INTRODUCTION 
Beach profile data from 32 profile stations along the oceanside of Long 
Beach Island, New Jersey, from Barnegat Inlet at the north end of the island to 
the Brigantine National Wildlife Refuge, about 4 kilometers north of Beach Haven 
Inlet, were collected from 1962 to 1973 by the U.S. Army Engineer District, 
Philadelphia,as part of the U.S. Army Coastal Engineering Research Center (CERC) 
Beach Evaluation Program (BEP) (formerly known as the Pilot Program for Improv- 
ing Coastal Storm Warnings or the Storm Warning Program). The BEP was initiated 
after the Great East Coast Storm of March 1962 to observe variations on typical 
beaches in response to waves and tides of specific intensity and duration. 
Twelve beaches in the region hardest hit by that storm (Massachusetts to North 
Carolina) are under study in this program. The movement and the devastation of 
the March 1962 storm are described in U.S. Congress (1962), U.S. Army Engineer 
Division, North Atlantic (1963) and Bretschneider (1964). Other important 
applications of the BEP include use of the data in generating a predictive 
model of beach erosion (Galvin, 1969) and in providing representative values 
of basic engineering information for the planning and design of protective 
structures or remedial measures for stabilizing and maintaining beaches (Everts, 
1973). 
This report presents an analysis of the beach profile data collected at 
Long Beach Island, documents the locations of the profile lines, and evaluates 
the relationship of changes in beach elevation, sand volume, and shoreline 
position to changes in waves, water level, sediment size and supply, storm 
events, and coastal structures. The analysis includes a review of previous 
studies in the area to determine the relevant long-term trends in waves, winds, 
and tides. 
Variability in the shape of the beach profile was analyzed using the empir- 
ical eigenfunction technique as well as by other standard methods performed at 
CERC. Changes were evaluated on three time scales: (a) short-term changes 
caused by individual storms or events occurring between surveys; (b) seasonal 
changes observed over the typical 3-month season; and (c) long-term changes that 
occur yearly. Spatial variability in both the shore-parallel and shore-normal 
directions was analyzed to determine the effects of coastal structures and 
systematic changes caused by variable wave refraction and other factors. Partic- 
ular emphasis has been given to the effects of storms and to the evaluation of 
the closely spaced profile data obtained within the vicinity of a selected groin 
field. 
II. THE STUDY AREA 
1. Geography and Geomorphology. 
Long Beach Island (Fig. 1) is a barrier island located along the coast of 
southern New Jersey. It separates the Atlantic Ocean and three shallow bays 
and associated salt marsh areas, each of which extends along approximately equal 
