Signs are going up on Minnesota Point to warn Park Point beach goers about shredded aluminum cans accidentally dumped on the beach.

This all began last year when the city of Duluth and the Corps of Engineers worked to limit erosion by placing dredge material onto the beach near the aerial lift bridge. 

People soon began finding decades-old metal cans that came with the dredge material. 

Engineers say they've collected 20 gallons of that debris from the shore since October, and another 20 gallons of other trash left on Park Point. Duluth’s Corps of Engineers Chief of Construction and Survey Corey Weston say the corps is waiting on city approval for further cleanup efforts.

“The community's safety is the top priority for the Corps of Engineers, we also worked with the city to get the right of entry and to get the cleanup plans done as soon as possible, but they are now under review with the city,” said Weston.

Mayor Emily Larson this month sent a request to the Corps of Engineers for a Section 111 study. This study would investigate potential impacts to shoreline or construction projects for limiting shoreline damages, and give the city an idea of impacts Park Point could see if nothing is done to resolve its erosion issue.

“The study if approved with give us an invaluable insight into the long-term trend of our beaches if we take no mitigating actions,” said Jim Filby Williams, City of Duluth Director of Property, Parks and Libraries.

A Section 111 study was completed in 2001, but updates in science today give the city and engineers a cause for reexamination.

Filby Williams said if the study is approved it will help them develop and access a variety of actions so that they can come up with a solution that is environmentally sound, and cost effective.

To read the original story and see related reporting, follow this link to the WDIO-TV website. https://www.wdio.com/duluth-minnesota-news/signs-added-to-park-point-warning-of-possible-shredded-al...