Bay Beach Nourishment Project

The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC), in partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), is advancing the Delaware River Dredged Material Utilization (DMU) Project, also known as the Bay Beach Nourishment Project. Each year, approximately three million cubic yards of sand are dredged from the Delaware

---

The Indian River Inlet Sand Bypass System

The Indian River Inlet Sand Bypass System is getting ready to start pumping sand again, after an upgrade from diesel power to electric. prep work requires periodic closures and access restrictions on both the North and South sides of the inlet and within Delaware Seashore State Park. A view east from the

---

Shoreline Public Access 

Starting in the summer of 2026, Delaware communities along Atlantic Ocean and Delaware Bay shorelines will need approved shoreline public access plans before beginning beach nourishment, maintenance or improvement projects using public funds. To help them meet that requirement, DNREC’s Shoreline and Waterway Management Section (SWMS) has developed guidelines for developing shoreline public access plans. 

---

Economic Analysis for Shoreline Management

The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) has released a study that investigates the economic benefits of beach nourishment and begins to explore a more equitable policy to share the cost of these projects with the people who benefit from them. [button type=”primary” block=”true” link=”https://documents.dnrec.delaware.gov/Watershed/Shorelines/economic-analysis/Full-Report.pdf”

---

CoastSnap DE

Visitors to two of Delaware’s most popular beaches can help collect valuable data needed to monitor Delaware’s changing coastline. And all they need is their smartphone. CoastSnap DE is part of a global community science project that places simple camera mounts at beaches. Visitors are invited to take

---

Delaware Inland Bay and Delaware Bay Coast Coastal Storm Risk Management Study

The Coastal Storm Risk Management Study of the Delaware Inland Bays and Delaware Bay Coast (known as the Back Bay Study) will explore potential storm risk management problems and flood risk reduction solutions. It will recommend risk reduction solutions that increase community resilience to coastal storms. Statement from

---

Coastal Construction Permits

The DNREC Division of Watershed Stewardship manages permits and approvals under the regulatory programs that govern coastal construction in Delaware. ePermitting Application Instructions

---

Questions and Answers

A collection of common questions, and answers, about the coastal construction regulatory program. The Division of Watershed Stewardship’s Shoreline and Waterway Management Section has a series of maps that show the location of the Building Line.

---

Adopt-a-Beach

DNREC’s Adopt-A-Beach program is a partnership between the Department and Delaware volunteers, working in tandem to protect and enhance Delaware’s beaches. Going beyond just picking up litter, DNREC’s

---

Beach Grass Planting

Volunteers are the backbone of Delaware’s shoreline stabilization. Every spring since 1990, except when pandemic conditions prevented it, dedicated volunteers have stabilized Delaware’s sand dunes by planting more than 5 million stems of Cape American beach grass along ocean and bay beaches. 2026 Beach Grass Planting

---

You Can Help Protect Beaches and Dunes

There are several ways property owners and visitors can preserve and protect beaches and dunes. Plant Beach Grass Planting ‘Cape’ American beach grass (Ammophila breviligulata)

---

Beaches and Shorelines

The DNREC Shoreline and Waterway Management Section works to maintain and improve Delaware’s beaches, shorelines and waterways. The section manages the shoreline through regulation of coastal construction activities and implementation of dune and beach management practices. It also works to protect and enhance eroded beaches to enable continued

---

Coastal Construction

Coastal development adds stress to beach systems, especially to dunes. Dunes and beaches are the first lines of protection from wave action for coastal communities during coastal storms. Dunes also act as storage areas that supply sand to the beach during storms.

---

Delaware Beach Building Line Maps

The Regulations Governing Beach Protection and the Use of Beaches (7 DE Admin. Code 5102) establishes a “building line” along the coast and stipulate that no construction may take place seaward of that without a Coastal Construction Permit or Coastal Construction Letter of Approval from the Department. The building line is mapped by the Department

---

Beaches are a Natural Resource

The sandy beaches along the Atlantic Ocean and Delaware Bay shorelines are valuable natural resources to the State of Delaware. The beaches were created by nature and continue to be shaped by wind and waves. The 1972 Beach Preservation Act (7 Del.C. Chapter 68) provides the authority to DNREC to enhance, preserve, and protect the

---