KIHEI, Maui — Fences and native plants should repair coastal dunes along South Kihei Road and help stop sand from blowing into the street, organizers of the dune restoration project said last week.

Volunteers on Thursday braved the Kihei heat to pound fence posts into the sand, and Maui County donated materials and will provide a water truck four times a week to help plants get established.

The work includes creating designated walkways across the sand for beachgoers and roping off the tops of the dunes to keep people from walking over the new plants.

"We're making a lot of progress," said Bob Richardson of South Maui Volunteers, who helped marshal workers for the job.

County road crews in May removed nearly six feet from the top of dunes on the makai side of the road just north of the Maui Lu Resort, before stopping in response to public concerns. County officials later said the crews did the excavation in an over-eagerness to respond to neighbors' complaints about sand blowing into the road. Grading coastal sand dunes is prohibited under the Maui County code, and the county did not apply for a special management area permit for the work.

Public Works Director Milton Arakawa said the Planning Department had issued a minor special management area permit for the dune restoration project.

A second project to secure sand dunes a few miles north, where county crews dumped the sand originally removed near the Maui Lu, is still awaiting permits. The Maui and Lanai Island Burial Council ordered the county to first sift through the dumped sand to check for burials or artifacts. Once that step is completed, the county could receive a permit and volunteers would proceed with fencing and planting in that area, Arakawa said.

Future work days on the sand dunes are planned. Volunteers can call Richardson at (808) 874-9374 or (808) 264-1798.