NCI conducted a comprehensive analysis to define the prevailing and extreme nearshore wave climate along 30 miles of metropolitan shoreline. The purpose of the study was to provide input for sand management planning and to better define design criteria for shoreline stabilization structures and development. Local, regional and global meteorology was studied to identify the dominant patterns of deep water wave generation. Nearshore transformation of wave energy along the study area was described using a state-of-the-art spectral model which included island sheltering effects. The analysis was synthesized into recurrence estimates of expected wave conditions throughout the County’s shoreline using a Monte Carlo simulation. The numerical model simulated the seasonal variation in deep water wave occurrences and the resultant heights, periods, and angles of incidence after propagation to the Orange County coastline. Extreme wave climate was determined using a storm track hindcast technique.