Sand from Otago Harbour is on its way to Dunedin's beleaguered Ocean Beach.
The sand is being dredged from the harbour over the next five weeks and will be stored at a stockpile area at the end of Middle Beach's Moana Rua Rd.
It will then be used as needed for repair work due to be completed before next winter.
The stretch of Ocean Beach from Middle Beach to St Clair was badly hit by June's storms, which caused dune erosion and significant sand loss.
Dunedin City Council's contracted erosion expert, Tonkin and Taylor director and coastal engineer Richard Reinen-Hamill, visited the beach earlier this month and has since delivered a report to the council.
That report explained there was no immediate risk to any private property from the erosion, DCC parks, recreation and aquatics general manager Richard Saunders said yesterday.
''It's identified that the most significant areas of erosion were in the areas where there were damaged and vandalised sand sausages,'' Mr Saunders said.
Those sand sausages would be repaired or replaced.
New sand sausages could be added, and the ''reno mattresses''' - rock and wire structures at Middle Beach - would also need repair or replacement.
But the council's first step was to ''come up with concepts and bring them to the community'' for consultation, he said.
That would be done before the end of the year, and all work was expected to be completed ''in time for next winter''.
Ongoing monitoring of the beach's sand levels would continue, Mr Saunders said.
Port Otago chief executive Geoff Plunket said the dredge New Era would collect 2500cu m of sand over the coming weeks, with five or six loads needed.
The first load was delivered on Friday, and deliveries would continue at weekly intervals.
The sand was being taken to Dunedin's Victoria Wharf (T&U), where it would be dried for several days before being trucked to the Middle Beach stockpile area.
Mr Plunket said the sand was being dredged from the harbour's entrance, to ensure ''nice clean sand''.
