Massive swells are welcome this year with banks of sand in place ready to buffer rough seas

GOLD Coast beaches have had so much sand pumped onto them council is actually welcoming swells whipped up by powerful summer storms this year.

It’s a radical change because most years heavy machinery is called in to stop rough seas from washing beaches away and damaging property and infrastructure.

Engineering bosses say three million cubic metres of sand lay in wait on “storm banks” offshore in 10m of water.

The sand is ready for cyclonic swells thanks to a world-first $13.9 million sand replenishment project from earlier this year.

Council coastal engineer Shannon Hunt said he welcomed the storms because they will widen Gold Coast beaches by pushing the sand dumped closer to shore.

A 111m dredge spent three months on the Gold Coast pumping the sand just offshore.

“We’re going to need a big storm to move that sand,” Mr Hunt said.