Save Sunset Cliffs

Save Sunset Cliffs is an organization dedicated to the protection of the Sunset Cliffs in San Diego California. It was founded in 2001 by Richard William Aguirre.
Master plan
The Save Sunset Cliffs Master Plan for Sunset Cliffs Park:
1. Stop the erosion of Sunset Cliffs Park.
2. The preservation and repair of Sunset Cliffs Boulevard.
3. The preservation of the current use, the history, and the surf culture of the park.
To accomplish this a new "Comprehensive Storm Drain System" is the top priority of "Save Sunset Cliffs Master Plan". This new "Comprehensive Storm Drain System" will dramatically eliminate the erosion of the cliff by allowing the cliffs in Sunset Cliffs Park, to dry out and stop the "Top-Down Block Erosion" that is occurring at Sunset Cliffs Park. With the saturation of the cliff stopped by the "Comprehensive Storm Drain System", this will allow for the repair of the Boulevard where it is being undermined by the saturation of the Cliff through runoff and save the boulevard for future generations.
Erosion Plan
Sunset Cliffs Park is eroding at an unbelievable rate. At this point, the erosion in Sunset Cliffs Park is at an emergency status. In the next couple of years the erosion at Sunset Cliffs will reach crisis levels, and very similar to the coastlines in other Southern California coastal locations. Many Southern California coastal locations are experiencing catastrophic home and coastal usable land loss. At this point Sunset Cliffs park is at emergency land loss status. Sunset Cliffs Boulevard is also in serious jeopardy of being lost if the current rate of erosion isn't addressed immediately. If the erosion isn't addressed immediately there will not only be serious crisis conditions with not just the coastal parkland and boulevard loss but also with crisis status home and life loss. The Current need for a new "Comprehensive Storm Drain System" could not be underestimated.
"Top-Down Erosion", Both Block and Slope erosion. Top-down Block erosion is caused by the cliff edge becoming saturated and then collapsing in block sections and the Top-down Slope Erosion caused by water running off the cliffs during rainstorms.
At Sunset Cliffs Park erosion is happening in the locations were the streets that come down the hillside of Point Loma, intersect Sunset Cliffs Boulevard. The erosion is being caused by the inability for the current storm drain ( which is only the curb), to control the velocity and the volume of the rainwater runoff. The rain/storm water runoff that Sunset Cliffs park experiences is at a much larger volume and velocity than the current system can control. The result is water flowing uncontrolled to the cliffs edge where it is saturating the Cliffs and causing the catastrophic "Top-Down Block Erosion" that we have been experiencing at Sunset Cliffs for decades.
Comprehensive Storm Drain System
The new "Comprehensive Storm Drain System" will consist of two separate systems with two separate rainwater outfall pipes into the ocean. Each of the systems will include a state-of-the-art pollution system that will allow for the toxic pollutants to be collected in holding tanks and trickled into the sewer system for treatment. The non-polluted runoff water will be piped five hundred feet off shore into the sub-tidal zone. Any work on or near the cliff will use micro-tunneling technology due to the extremely fragile nature of the cliff composition and condition.
The serious erosion that is occurring at Sunset Cliffs Park is called "Top-Down Block Erosion". It is caused by the cliff edge becoming saturated and then collapsing in block sections. At Sunset Cliffs Park this is happening in the locations were the streets that come down the hill of Point Loma intersect Sunset Cliffs Boulevard. The erosion is being caused by the inability for the current storm drain (which is only the curb), to control the velocity and the volume of the rainwater runoff. The rain/storm water runoff that Sunset Cliffs park experiences is at a much larger volume and velocity than the current system can control. The result is water flowing uncontrolled to the cliffs' edge where it is saturating the cliffs and causing the catastrophic "Top-Down Block Erosion" that we have been experiencing at Sunset Cliffs for decades.
(Top-Down Erosion at Sunset Cliffs)
The new "Comprehensive Storm Drain System" will be located in the public right of way alley east of Sunset Cliffs Boulevard. It will intersect each of the streets that come down the hill of Point Loma with a storm drain grate across the street at the point were each street intersects the alley of Sunset Cliffs Boulevard. This Storm Drain grate will flow the runoff directly into the new storm drain pipe and will collect the upslope rainwater runoff before the runoff is able to reach the cliffs' edge and cause the catastrophic erosion that is occurring at this point.
The first system of the new "Comprehensive Storm Drain System" includes the streets that run upslope of Point Loma Avenue to Guizot St. These streets and avenue will be fit with a storm drain grate were they intersect the alley east of Sunset Cliffs Boulevard. This storm drain grate will flow into the new "Comprehensive Storm Drain System" were the polluted water will be removed and the clean water will flow into the ocean through a micro-tunneled outfall pipe.
The new storm drain pipe will connect to a pollutant removal holding tank system, which will allow for first flow pollutants to be removed and trickled into the sewer system for treatment (similar to La Jolla). The second flow and cleaner water will then flow through the micro-tunneled outfall pipes that exits 500 feet offshore at the cliffs' base. This first system's outfall pipe will be located at "Caldwell's Creek" cove, into the sub-tidal zone.
The second system of the new "Comprehensive Storm Drain System" will be located in the right of way alley east of Sunset Cliffs Boulevard and includes the streets south from Hill Street to Western Loop Road. These Streets include Hill Street, Monaco Street, Carmelo Street, Ladera Street, and Western Loop Road. Each of these streets will be fitted with a storm drain grate were they intersect the alley east of Sunset Cliffs Boulevard. The system will collect the rainwater runoff from Point Loma Nazarene University that runs to the culvert down Western Loop Road, along with all the water from the other streets in the system. It will flow the rainwater runoff into the new "Comprehensive Storm Drain System" were the polluted water will be removed and the clean water will flow into the ocean through a micro-tunneled outfall pipe. This second system will also collect the rainwater from the lower hillside parking lot and flow the runoff into the new "Comprehensive Storm Drain System". All polluted water will be removed by the pollution removal tank system. The clean water outfall pipe for this system is will be located near Monaco Street and exits at the cliffs base, 500 feet offshore in the sub-tidal zone.
Summary: "Comprehensive Storm Drain System"
The importance of a new "Comprehensive Storm Drain System" cannot be understated. Without a new system, Sunset Cliffs Park and Sunset Cliffs Boulevard will be lost to the "Top-Down" erosion that is occurring at Sunset Cliffs Park. The new "Comprehensive Storm Drain System" is the top priority of the "Save Sunset Cliffs Master Plan".
Sunset Cliffs Boulevard
With a new " Comprehensive Storm Drain System" the erosion of Sunset Cliffs and the undermining of Sunset Cliffs Boulevard will be stopped and the preservation of the boulevard will no longer be like "fighting a ragging river". With the erosion stopped the locations were the boulevard has been undermined can be repaired in order to preserve the boulevard in its current location. These locations of serious undermining of the boulevard and the corresponding repairs are as fallows:
1. Hill Street; Where Hill Street meets the cliffs edge of Sunset Cliffs Boulevard. This location extends from Hill Street to the entrance of "No Surf Beach". This Hill Street location is in need of immediate repair. This location repair consists of a "tie-Back" repair that bolts back a small selective piece of natural colored stuccoed wire mesh to the cliff.
2. Rockslides; South of Monaco Street 200 feet where Sunset Cliffs Boulevard Bends. This Rockslides location repair need to have the rip-rap secured with colored cement mastic and a small tie back to maintain the integrity of the boulevard.
3. The Clairbourne's Cove location needs the rip-rap to be configured to create an opening in the center of the rip-rap wall and then anchor the rip-rap with a natural colored cement mastic. With the new "Comprehensive Storm Drain System" this location will not suffer the erosion that is currently occurring, and will allow Clairbourne's Cove to once again flush naturally.
Preservation of Sunset Cliffs Park & Culture
Sunset Cliffs Park is divided int two sections, a "Linear Section" and a "Hillside Section". The "Linear Section" consisting of the west cliffs edge side of Sunset Cliffs Boulevard, from Adair Street to the corner of Ladera Street and Sunset Cliffs Boulevard. The cliff edge to the guard rail on the west side of Sunset Cliffs Blvd. The "Hillside Section" Consists of 50 acres south of Ladera Street, west of Point Loma Nazarene University, and north of the U.S. Navy Land. The "Save Sunset Cliffs Master Plan" for both the "Linear" and "Hillside" sections of the park is to stop the erosion. With the new " Comprehensive Storm Drain System" the park will stop eroding and we can start to address a few specific issues that need to be addressed within the park. They are as Fallows:
1. Sunset Cliffs Surf Culture: The benches and other memorials that are placed in Sunset Cliffs Park will not be removed by the city. The Sunset Cliffs community will govern what memorials stay and go in the park.
2. Beach Access: There will be no new accesses built to base of the cliff or beaches in Sunset Cliffs Park. The beach accesses will be maintained in their current locations and maintained in their natural native state. The new " Comprehensive Storm Drain System" will stop the storms from damaging the trails during the winter, and allow them to be up-kept much more easily.
3. Trails System: The access to the Sunset Cliffs Coastal Trail will be limited due to danger at the cliff edge. The guardrail will be replaced from Adair Street, to Ladera Street, and all of the current access points,( sections newly removed from rail on coastal cliff) be closed to prevent foot traffic on the cliffs edge.
4. Parking Lots: The Parking Lots will be repaired and maintained in their exact configuration. The Parking Lots will be curbed and a drain installed to stop any erosion. These Parking Lots are a huge park of the Surfing culture of Sunset Cliffs Park. It is in these Parking Lots that generations of Surfers have come to gather, and these Lots themselves are very famous in the history of surfing not only to San Diego Surfers but to Surfers all around the world.
5. Leave the Houses in the Park:
6. Replace Signage in the Park:
7. Leave The Grass Field:
8. No permanent Restrooms in the Park.
9. No Park Ranger in the Park.
10. Re-Vegetation will be drought tolerant.
San Diego City Plan for Sunset Cliffs Natural Park
Link to San Diego city's Master Plan for Sunset Cliffs Park:
http://www.sandiego.gov/park-and-recreation/parks/shoreline/sunset.shtml

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