“Living Shorelines” Will Get Fast Track to Combat Sea Level Rise
As sea levels rise along U.S. coasts, it may soon get easier for people and local governments to obtain federal permits to build what are known as “living shorelines,” natural or nature-based structures designed to protect communities and infrastructure from extreme storms and flooding even as they protect habitat.
New study shows impact of human-made structures on Louisiana’s coastal wetlands
As Louisiana’s wetlands continue to disappear at an alarming rate, a new study has pinpointed the human-made structures that disrupt the natural water flow and threaten these important ecosystems. The findings have important implications for New Orleans and other coastal cities that rely on coastal wetlands to serve as buffer from destructive extreme weather events.
Shifting sand differs on developed, undeveloped beaches; Georgia
Natural and undeveloped beaches should not be armored or modified with “nourishment,” as the sand-sharing system moves deposits from dune to beach in storms and back again. Normally following storms, beach sands are gradually returned to reform dunes.
Living shorelines a more natural approach to preventing coastal erosion
For centuries, large bulkheads have been used to help control erosion along coastlines. More recent research suggests that a natural approach may be a better alternative. Having nature on your side, especially during a storm or hurricane, is proven to provide better protection from coastal erosion.
Terminal Groins Don’t Stop Erosion
Decisions about terminal groins are being made in towns throughout the southern N.C. coast after the N.C. General Assembly in 2011 repealed a nearly 30-year-old ban on hardened beach erosion control structures. Legislators changed the law in 2015 to allow for up to six terminal groins.
First Salish Sea-wide shoreline armoring study shows cumulative effects on ecosystem
Impacts associated with shoreline armoring can scale up to have cumulative, large-scale effects on the characteristics of shorelines and the diversity of life they support, new research shows.
Living Shorelines: Better Than Bulkheads
More than 14,000 miles – 14 percent of continental U.S. coastline — has been armored with hardened structures. Hardened structures cause elevated rates of erosion on the shoreward side of the structure.
New Rules to Ease Sandbag Restrictions, NC
Proposed new rules will make it easier for beachfront land owners to build sandbag walls and leave them in place for longer periods. Members of the state panel directed by the N.C. General Assembly to create the rules expressed fears that the new, looser restrictions could result in hardened beaches along the entire N.C. coast.
North Topsail Beach Debacle No Way for NC to Manage its Coast; Op Ed By Robert Young
Is North Topsail Beach the most poorly managed beach community in the country? If not, it certainly seems to be taking a good shot at it. I have watched in dismay as the town has struggled to preserve a small stretch of oceanfront property at all costs.