45+ Years of Coastal Resilience Design: Angus Jackson's Legacy on the Gold Coast
- ICM News
- Mar 27, 2024
- 4 min read
Updated: 2 days ago
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, parts of the Gold Coast coastline were under real pressure. Erosion was affecting dunes, accessways, and built assets, and the city’s beach economy was starting to feel the risk. Angus Jackson was working with the Gold Coast City Council during this period, when many of the approaches that now guide urban beach management were still being tested, debated, and refined.
A reminder of that era surfaced for us through an old Engineers Australia magazine article from 1989 that captured Angus' approach at the time. It’s a valuable snapshot of the thinking that shaped the Gold Coast’s shift from reacting to erosion, to managing sand and shoreline change as an ongoing program.
It's clear that Jackson's foresight and dedication have left an immense mark on the field of coastal engineering in Australia and globally, offering lessons on the power of innovation and the critical importance of working with nature.
Developing Nearshore Nourishment: The 1985 Shift
In the late 1970's and early 1980's, the Gold Coast's beaches faced a real threat from erosion, with clear implications for both public assets and tourism.
To combat the erosion, Angus, then supervising engineer for special projects at the Gold Coast City Council, pioneered a nearshore nourishment (sand placement) program in 1985. His approach was "to work with nature."
The initiative was to place sand in the nearshore so natural processes could do the redistribution, supporting wider beaches without trying to “freeze” the coastline in place.
That work complemented an exisiting beach nourishment program that began in 1974 following a study by Delft Hydraulics Laboratory, and it helped build confidence that sand placement could be planned as an ongoing management tool rather than a one-off emergency response.
Angus famously stated, “Either Christmas '89 is a good beach, or I'm looking for a new job,” displaying his commitment and belief in the project's success.
Urban Dunes and Access
Sand volumes and coastal structures often get most of the attention, but dunes and access planning are also integral to long term beach performance.
Angus helped shape approaches to vegetate dunes over terminal gold coast seawalls, sand management, and monitoring procedures that support day-to-day beach usability while building coastal resilience.
A well-managed dune system is not only an environmental asset, it is a practical piece of coastal protection for urban beaches.
Coastal Innovations that Resonated Globally
Angus' influence expanded internationally through his company International Coastal Management, including his work on the multi-purpose artificial reef at Narrowneck, utilising geotextile sand containers.
Narrowneck is often cited because it represented a different way to think about coastal infrastructure: a project designed to deliver more than one outcome. Shoreline protection mattered, but so did environmental and recreational value, including surf amenity.
As Angus put it at the time: "The creation of the large nearshore shoals has modified the wave climate and given immediate protection to the foreshore."
Over the years, Narrowneck has also become a long-running reference point for monitoring and learning. That is the real advantage of these projects when they are treated as part of a program: you don’t only build something; you keep measuring what it does, and use that information to guide decisions elsewhere.
Sand bypassing
Another pillar of the Gold Coast approach is sand bypassing and backpassing around trained entrances. Longshore transport does not stop because a navigation entrance is engineered. If sand continuity is interrupted, erosion and downdrift impacts can follow.
These systems are often described as navigation infrastructure, but they are also beach infrastructure. When they are operated and maintained as long-term assets, they can support safer navigation while sustaining beach condition.
Research and Education in Coastal Resilience
Angus' work through council and International Coastal Management laid the groundwork for ongoing research and education in coastal resilience. He played a pivotal role in establishing the Griffith University Centre for Coastal Management department (now called Coastal Marine and Research Centre), aiming to preserve the accumulated knowledge and continue the advancement of coastal adaptation techniques and lessons.
This continuity is one reason the Gold Coast is referenced internationally. It is not only the physical interventions; it is the habit of measuring, learning, and sharing outcomes across engineers, universities, and practitioners.
Alongside this, Angus serves on the National Committee on Coastal and Ocean Engineering, contributing to ongoing professional practice and knowledge sharing across the sector.
A Future Built on Foundations of the Past
The foresight and effectiveness of Angus Jackson's strategies have been extensively documented, showcasing not just the revitalisation of the Gold Coast's beaches but also marking significant progress in coastal engineering practices globally.
The Gold Coast’s coastal management is often described through the visible features: the wide beaches, the dune buffers, the engineered entrances, and the long-running sand programs. What sits underneath those features is a program approach: set objectives, test and implement, monitor, refine, repeat.
That same delivery mindset is now being applied beyond Australia. ICM’s award in the RE:BEACH design competition in Oceanside, California provides us an opportunity to design and implement a coastal resilience approach based on the success of the Gold Coast.
The design approach includes a multi purpose artificial reef, nearshore nourishment, sand/dune management plan and sand bypassing. This could be the new blueprint for coastal adaption methods in southern California.
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