Residents and businesses along Pinellas County's barrier islands didn't just get inundated with record storm surge during Hurricane Helene.
The storm also deposited tons of sand onto the properties.
The question now is what they can do to clear it out.
The first thing is to make sure it doesn't contain contaminants, according to a Pinellas County news release Monday.
Cathie Perkins, the county's director of emergency management, said it could be an environmental hazard.
"I know you want to get our beaches back, but we don't want to be putting dirty sand out there," Perkins said.
The county also issued the following guidelines:
- Clean sand can be returned to the beach above the high tide line. It can't contain stains, odor or debris, and can't be placed over dune plants, turtle nests, or storm or construction debris.
- If the sand is not clean, you can request permission from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection by calling 840-245-2094, or emailing here. If it signs off, the same restrictions apply, and failure to comply could result in civil penalties.
If it is contaminated, Perkins suggests leaving the sand for debris collectors to pick it up.
These restrictions are also in place:
- Do not put sand in your trash.
- Do not place sand in any right-of-way or push it onto the road.
- Do not attempt to clear public roads.
- If a seaward side of a property's seawall is exposed, residents should consult a structural engineer or licensed marine contractor before covering the wall with sand. Placing sand on a damaged seawall could cause further and costly damage.
County officials say uncontaminated sand is being moved to holding areas where it will go through a filtering process to remove any debris before it's returned to the beaches.
WUSF reporter Nancy Guan contributed to this report.
