Essay on "Beach Erosion: Causes and Remedies"

Essay 2 pages (675 words) Sources: 1+

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Another solution, which has been proposed to help the rapidly-shrinking island of Galveston in Texas, is using "geotubes or artificial reefs" to "trap sand" (Rice 2007). However, this has a negative effect on other areas, because these reefs "hoard scarce sand and starve neighboring beaches," which simply moves the problem to another region (Rice 2007). Other communities have tried adding sand to reduce the effects of erosion, with greater success. "In the early 1980s, the city of Miami spent some $65 million adding sand to a 10-mile stretch of fast-eroding shoreline. Not only did the effort stave off erosion, it helped revitalize the tony South Beach neighborhood and rescue hotels, restaurants and shops there that cater to the rich and famous" ("What causes beach erosion," Scientific American, 2008).

However, replenishing beaches with sand does not make everyone happy. Surfers complain that reconstructed beaches often have a straight shoreline, and without a curve, this prevents the types of waves that are suitable for surfing. There are also concerns about the type of sand used to 'fill in' the coast line and what the project may unearth. One reconstruction project in Long Beach Island, NJ found many old munitions from World War I (Berry 2012).

However, the only long-term solution to beach erosion is to strive to stop the effects of global warming. Rising sea levels will continue to cause beaches to erode, despite the best efforts of human beings to contain the effects. Fundamentally, we as a society must make changes in our lifestyle and how we consumer natural resources to curtail rising temperatures and sea levels. Everything else is simply a band-aid solution.


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