Beach re-nourishment. Photo source: © SAF — Coastal Care
“Beach nourishment projects have become commonplace along the US East and Gulf Coasts. These projects have immediate environmental impacts through burial of nearshore habitat and increased turbidity during project placement.The cumulative environmental impacts of doing this repeatedly on the same beach while conducting projects from Maine to Texas is unknown. But, we should be concerned. ” —Robert S. Young, PhD, Director, Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines, Professor, Coastal Geology, Western Carolina University
Excerpts;
Jupiter Island, a well-heeled seaside enclave where home values average $4.97 million, was awarded $8.6 million in federal emergency money for beach re-nourishment following a beating by 2016’s Hurricane Matthew.
Martin County is one of 18 in Florida, including Palm Beach, that received a presidential declaration allowing for FEMA public assistance.
FEMA has obligated more than $233 million for Florida beach projects under the program after Hurricane Matthew…
Read Full Article, The Palm Beach Post (04-11-2018)
Gone with the wind: storms deepen Florida’s beach sand crunch; Reuters (02-16-2018)
Costs of so-called beach renourishments are a fraction of the total, measured in hundreds of millions of dollars, but the effort is crucial for Florida’s $67 billion tourism industry. And while sand needs are surging, there is not enough to go around…
Sand washes away as quickly as it can be dumped, Bathtub Beach, FL, TCPalm News (11-17-2017)
Between 2004 and 2014, some $13.6 million was spent on beach renourishment in Martin County, Florida. About $7.1 million came from local funds — your tax dollars. In the past two years, more than $6 million from a variety of sources has been spent to renourish and restore dunes at Bathtub Beach alone…
Factbox: Sifting Through U.S. Beach Sand Numbers; Reuters (02-16-2018)
Coastal geologist criticizes beach renourishment efforts; By Robert S. Young, PhD; The State (08-17-2016)
Rob Young, who heads the Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines at Western Carolina University, said the government is subsidizing coastal development with renourishment money – and that’s costing taxpayers. Communities across the country have spent millions of dollars renourishing beaches. Those efforts encourage people to rebuild after every major hurricane…
Is Beach Renourishment Worth The Money? WWAY News (02-16-2015)
Economy Winner, Environment Loser in Renourishment; Pensacola News Journal (12-02-2015)
Beach replenishment may have far reaching impacts on ecosystems;” Phys.Org (03-29-2016)
UC San Diego biologists who examined the biological impact of replenishing eroded beaches with offshore sand found that such beach replenishment efforts could have long-term negative impacts on coastal ecosystems…
Study: Sand nourishment linked to fewer marine life, Palm Beach Daily News (04-2016)
A recent study examining the impact of beach nourishment projects on marine life should provoke further research by local scientists, according to a Palm Beach Atlantic University biologist…
Beach renourishment sand could affect coral reefs off Broward; Fla.; The Sun-Sentinel (11-25-2016)
Sand, Rarer Than One Thinks: A UNEP report (GEA-March 2014)
Despite the colossal quantities of sand and gravel being used, our increasing dependence on them and the significant impact that their extraction has on the environment, this issue has been mostly ignored by policy makers and remains largely unknown by the general public.
In March 2014 The United Nations released its first Report about sand mining. “Sand Wars” film documentary by Denis Delestrac – first broadcasted on the european Arte Channel, May 28th, 2013, where it became the highest rated documentary for 2013 – expressly inspired the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to publish this 2014-Global Environmental Alert.
