The Pacific Ocean is eating away at California’s most famous highway. And now, amidst the carnage, Governor Gavin Newsom is stepping in.
On Tuesday, October 27, Newsom is expected to sign an executive order aimed at protecting Pacific Coast Highway from increasingly destructive coastal erosion and powerful El Niño-fueled storms, according to breaking news from CNN.
See the announcement, linked here, and below.
The order will establish a Highway 1 task force, led by California’s transportation and natural resources agencies, to prepare vulnerable stretches for winter storms and develop longer-term solutions.
“Highway 1 is more than our nation’s most iconic roadway. It keeps our coastal economy moving,” Newsom said in a statement.
The Governor added:
“It gets people to work, children to school, goods to local businesses, first responders where they’re needed, and visitors to our legendary beaches.”
“We know what repeated closures cost these communities, and we’re putting state agencies to work now to reduce the danger before storms hit.”
And nowhere is the danger more apparent than El Morro, beside Crystal Cove State Park, between Laguna Beach and Newport Beach.
As SURFER previously reported, relentless hurricane swells, exceptionally high tides, and an El Niño-associated Kelvin wave have hammered the coastline, opening a massive crack in the bluff immediately below PCH.
The fracture measures approximately 360 feet long and up to two feet wide. Sections of the cliff have already collapsed toward the beach.
“I literally just watched part of the cliff fall,” Laguna Beach surfer Blair Conklin said in previous footage.
Caltrans has since secured $4 million in initial emergency funding to stabilize the slope.
The three-phase plan begins with plastic tarps and sand barriers covering the fractured hillside to prevent rainwater from worsening the damage. That phase was completed Monday.
Next, crews plan to reinforce the bluff’s base with a massive rock-filled buttress and protective barriers to absorb wave energy. This work awaits necessary approvals and must contend with incoming tides.
Related: Massive Cliff Collapse Near PCH Caught on Camera as El Niño Batters California (Video)
Finally, engineers will develop a longer-term stabilization strategy to protect the roadway.
Caltrans District 12 Director Lan Zhou said crews are “moving urgently to stabilize this slope and reduce the risk of further erosion.”
Traffic has already been diverted to one lane in each direction, using the northbound side of PCH. The highway itself has not collapsed.
Newsom’s latest action follows his September 21 statewide El Niño emergency declaration, with forecasters warning of potentially historic conditions this winter.
And for anyone familiar with El Morro, the stakes extend beyond transportation.
The once-iconic trailer park community and fickle surf spot, featured in Volcom’s Magna Plasm, is now ground zero for California’s battle against the ocean.
It looks much different these days. And winter hasn’t even arrived yet.
Related: $4 Million Emergency Plan Battles Crumbling California Cliff with Plastic Tarps (Video)
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