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Thanks to federal funds, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers received initial approval to heap millions of cubic yards of sand around the endangered Sand Island Lighthouse located off the coast of Dauphin Island, Alabama.
Sand Island Lighthouse once stood on a 400 acre island, which, over time, has virtually disappeared. In 2007, rip-rap installed around the lighthouse, literally saved it from possible collapse. But that was only a small part of the long-term solution. Because remnants of the island are still creating a shallow area that stretches west from the lighthouse toward Dauphin Island, the engineers plan to use that shoal as the basis for building a ridge of built up sand. It is hoped that the island will eventually be more than a mile long and even allow for the safe landing of boats so people will have a relatively easy method of visiting the lighthouse. (Photograph courtesy Bob & Sandra Shanklin, The Lighthouse People.)
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