The city is eyeing erosion at O'ahu beach parks and is awaiting the results of a study to determine which beaches need priority attention and what mitigation efforts will work.

The $100,000 report, being conducted by Sea Engineering Inc., is expected to be released by late summer. It will include recommendations for addressing erosion, along with "erosion hazard priorities."

A draft of the study is already under review by city officials.

The report is believed to be the first of its kind undertaken by the city in an effort to grapple with erosion islandwide. Collins Lam, deputy director of the city Department of Design and Construction, said the study will provide an extensive survey of conditions at O'ahu beach parks.

"It is actually a pretty comprehensive study," Lam said.

The study surveyed 62 beach parks, including beaches in Waikiki and Ala Moana.

No parks on the Wai'anae Coast were assessed.

The report rates the priority level of erosion issues at beach parks. The ratings, which range from critical to low, are based not only on the extent of erosion but the potential effects of erosion on park structures, the usability of a beach and roads that run along the shoreline.

James Barry, Sea Engineering coastal engineer, said the study provides recommendations for what the city can do to stem erosion at different parks. But he said more comprehensive studies would have to be conducted on a case-by-case basis to determine cost and other factors.

"It was basically reconnaissance," Barry said of the study.

Lam said the study will help the city come up with a plan for addressing erosion. He said any future city funding for erosion mitigation will likely be based on the report's findings.

In 2006, the state spent $475,000 on a beach-replenishment demonstration project in Waikiki, pumping in about 9,500 cubic yards of sand from offshore to Kuhio Beach.

A survey commissioned last year by the Waikiki Improvement Association and Hawai'i Tourism Authority said the disappearance of Waikiki Beach to erosion could cost the tourism industry nearly $2 billion annually in lost visitor spending.