Speak Up to Protect San Clemente State Beach from Hard Armoring
San Clemente has long been celebrated for its iconic beaches and world-class surf breaks. But this cherished stretch of sand is in jeopardy due to Orange County Transportation Authority's (OCTA) ongoing placement of large boulders, referred to as riprap, on the beach to buffer the rail line. With the chronic threat of erosion and accelerating sea level rise, Surfrider has been urging OCTA to move the tracks off this stretch of coastline for over two decades, but our plea has fallen on deaf ears. As we predicted, OCTA’s failure to move these tracks is now devastating San Clemente’s sandy beaches, coastal access, and iconic surf breaks.
Last year, we raised concerns about OCTA’s plans to protect the railroad by burying San Clemente’s State Beaches under tons of rock. Now it’s real. OCTA just submitted an emergency permit application to the California Coastal Commission that would allow them to build a new seawall or revetment stretching nearly 1,200 feet across San Clemente State Beach and Calafia State Beach — right in front of Calafia and the state campground. This historic beach is loved for its camping, waves, wildlife, and scenic bluff setting.
San Clemente State Beach is not just another stretch of coastline: it is a beloved beach for surfers and campers, offering 168 low-cost camping sites, easy access to the waves, and a stable, healthy beach. By extending armoring here, we will lose public access, irreplaceable ecosystems, and recreational opportunities; not only that, we will exacerbate the already dire erosion problem unnecessarily.
Take Action: Sign our petition to Save San Clemente State Beach!
Work under emergency permits is supposed to be temporary, according to the Coastal Commission, since it lacks environmental or engineering review and public participation. But this proposal walks, talks, and erodes like a permanent wall. The scale is huge:
- 34,100 tons of new boulders for the revetment or wall (Area 4), and
- Up to 300,000 cubic yards of sand dumped in front of the rocks to make it look nice, until it is washed away by strong swells during high (and king) tide events.
For context, this is more than what was dumped next door at Cyprus Shores under emergency permits in 2021 and 2022 — where about 26,000 tons of boulders were placed on the beach. That ‘emergency’ seawall is still there today, and the beach in front of it? Basically gone. OCTA has recently applied to the Coastal Commission to make the Cyprus Shores seawall permanent.
Cotton’s Point at Cyprus Shores Beach — next door to State Beach, where OCTA placed a 26,0000 ton revetment under an emergency permit in 2021-22.
This approach buries the public beach, making the stretch impassable for beachgoers, creating backwash at an iconic surf break, and cutting off access to San Onofre State Park. The boulders have significantly degraded Cotton’s Point, the northernmost break of world-famous Trestles, and are putting surfers and beachgoers at risk of injury from loose boulders in the surf zone.
The beach in front of the existing riprap at Cyprus Shore has disappeared and expanding armoring will cause a similar problem along San Clemente State Beach. It will also wipe out precious dunes, an important habitat for sensitive coastal and marine wildlife.
We’ve seen this play out before: rock goes in, sand disappears, public access shrinks, and the beach doesn’t come back.
What Else is in the Emergency Permit?
OCTA identified four ‘hotspots’ they say need urgent intervention. While the State Beach revetment is the biggest threat to the coast, here’s a snapshot of the others:
- Area 1 & 2 (North Beach + Las Palmeras): Rock repairs + 240,000 cubic yards of sand
- Area 3 (Mariposa Trail): Demolition of the old wall and construction of a new, taller catchment wall next to the bluff (up to 29 feet high)
- Area 4 (San Clemente + Calafia State Beach): Massive new armoring + riprap + 300,000 cubic yards of sand
In total, OCTA is framing this as a 95% sand / 5% rock project. But that 5%? It’s a lot of boulders that will not be removed, whereas sand replenishment does not typically stay long-term. And once the rocks go in, we rarely get a second shot to rethink it. Seawalls make erosion worse, drown our beaches and waves, and make our coast less resilient to climate change and rising seas.
Mark Your Calendars: April 9 – Santa Barbara
As usual with emergency permits, Coastal Commission staff might approve it behind the scenes this week. But the Coastal Commission will have the chance to reject it at their next hearing. We will be there to voice our opposition, and we need you to show up too!
🗓 Tuesday, April 9
📍 Santa Barbara Beachfront Hotel
🕘 (Exact time TBA — we’ll share it when we get it)
This is our one chance to direct OCTA to go through the proper permitting channels by asking the Commissioners to reject this emergency permit. See the Coastal Commission agenda here for more information.
Surfrider proudly supports public transportation, but we are against sacrificing public beaches without real community input, without environmental review, and without looking at better long-term options. We are urging OCTA to use nature-based, adaptive solutions and seek alternative transportation solutions, such as shuttles, which have proven a worthy substitute.
Take Action: Sign Our Petition to Save San Clemente State Beach!
Moving Forward: Coastal Protection, Not More Rocks
It is vital to recognize that coastal armoring is not a viable long-term solution. Replacing natural shoreline processes with rocks and other hard structures is a shortsighted approach that causes lasting harm. Rather than doubling down on hard defenses, Surfrider is advocating for solutions that restore rather than destroy the beach.
We know that nature-based solutions can work in California. Surfer’s Point in Ventura is a prime example of removing structures in harm’s way and making space for the coast. Coastal erosion will only get worse as seas rise over the coming decades. Planning for that reality now will save California’s precious coast. The below image, taken in 2023, shows Surfer’s Point after Phase 1 of the restoration project was complete.
Surfer’s Point in Ventura after managed retreat and coastal restoration from historic armoring.
The image below shows the state of Surfer’s Point before managed retreat and restoration. With careful coastal planning and management, we can restore San Clemente’s beaches too.
San Clemente’s beaches are part of the public trust — meaning they belong to all of us — and must not be sacrificed in the name of protecting infrastructure that has no business on our beach. We are calling for an approach that preserves the integrity of the coastline while addressing transportation needs. Coastal resilience does not have to come at the expense of our beaches, and it’s up to the local community, policymakers, and agencies like OCTA to find innovative alternatives.
Tap here to read our full position statement on OCTA railroad armoring.