Sandbar near Sanibel’s Blind Pass grows, neighbors fear inlet will close

LEE COUNTY, Fla. —

A large sandbar near Sanibel's Blind Pass is inching closer to the shoreline, leaving neighbors worried the entrance to the inlet will close up.

People like Kathy Tomita said they have watched the sand mount in the pass since the beach renourishment project last year.

"The sand has been filling up slowly, slowly, slowly, and it's going to be closing shortly," Tomita said.

Tourists like Joel Sanchez said the sandbar was not there in past years' visits.

"That whole corner right there has changed," Sanchez said, noting the erosion also seen in the area.

The changes follow last year's beach renourishment efforts, where crews deposited 300,000 cubic yards of sand nearby to combat shoreline erosion. Naturalist and wildlife expert Ranger Rob Howell said this is common after these types of projects.

"Any time they do a beach renourishment for these coastal islands in the barrier islands, nature puts the sand where it wants it to be," Howell said. "If humans bring in sand, whether it's offshore or by dump trucks, and put it on the coastline, the tides are going to be shifting and pulling that sand where it wants."

Sanibel neighbors like Tomita said they worry about impacts to water quality if the sand closes off the pass.

"Less wildlife, less fish, the water quality, the manatees," Tomita said. "We used to have the dolphins swimming by, and it's really too shallow for them now. If this gets cut off, it'll really be a problem for the wildlife."

Howell said the water quality could suffer if the channel closes.

"With seawater, if it becomes stagnant or trapped in tide pools because of renourishment projects or sand being pushed around, you can definitely get toxic algal blooms and bacterial blooms in those areas," Howell said.

Sanibel Vice Mayor Holly Smith said the condition of the pass will be discussed at the March 3 City Council meeting. A Lee County spokesperson said they are working with the city and Captiva Erosion Prevention District to monitor the area. The county could dredge out the pass starting next year.

However, Howell said he's not sure dredging will do much.

"Quite frankly, we're putting Band-Aids on broken legs trying to maintain these barrier islands with what's going on globally," Howell said. "These beach renourishment projects and things like that, we have to take very seriously as to how much of our resources we're going to put into saving things like this. If nature wants it to be washed away or filled in, it's going to do what it wants to do."

Despite the challenges, Tomita remains optimistic.

"I am remaining hopeful," Tomita said. "But the island has gone through a lot lately."

DOWNLOAD the free Gulf Coast News app for your latest news and alerts on breaking news, weather, sports, entertainment, and more on your phone or tablet. And check out the Very Local Gulf Coast app to stream news, entertainment and original programming on your TV.