Beach erosion along the Eastern Seacoast: causes and solutions

Beach Erosion and the Eastern Seacoast

The paper begins with the thesis statement relative to the topic to be discussed -- the erosion of beaches on the eastern seacoast. The reader is introduced to the environmental challenges of the modern society, to be then explained the meaning of the concept, the causes, and the effects of beach erosion. The following sections deal with beach erosion on the eastern seacoast, the actions that could be taken in order to resolve the problem (or at least limit its negative outcomes) and a final part on concluding remarks.

Many of the beaches along the Eastern Seacoast are in danger of disappearing as a result of erosion

The modern man seems more and more focused on understanding, developing and integrating high technological advancements. The world is evolving at such a rapid pace that it is at times difficult to keep up with. The modifications that have occurred at economic, political and technological levels are next to countless. But what seems forgotten in this process of rapid change is the environment. And the world that was once rich in all possible resources is now facing the risks of not being able to sustain life for the generations of the future.

The ultimate challenge of the modern man is than the salvation of the planet, severely affected by climate change, the melting of the glaciers or the growing levels of pollution. Another stringent issue that has to be addressed is the erosion of the beaches. Within the United States, the process has been widely spread along the Eastern Seacoast, which faces the risks of losing most of its beaches. In order to fully grasp the topic, it is necessary to first understand the process of beach erosion.

2. Beach Erosion

In the most simplistic formulation, erosion represents a process by which the beaches are gradually destroyed by natural elements, such as the wind or the sea waves. Beach erosion is different from this definition as the main generator is humanity, rather than the environment. Beach erosion occurs when sand is being taken off the beach by either man or nature and it was first observed in the 1830 as the residential market on the beaches increased. The owners of homes near seas and oceans observed that some of the beaches were disappearing, but by 1960, when the communists began to address the problems, much of the damage done was permanent (Drake, 2007).

Having defined the concept, it is now necessary to understand its causes. The primary cause of beach erosion is the theft of sand. This is almost always the result of man made activities and it is often done in unconscious manners, as it not observed, nor illegal. A round figure of the total sands that has so far been removed from the beaches totals to more than one billion cubic yards of sand. This is enough to fill a football filed of a height of more than 100 miles. Considering that all this sand is returned to the 2000 miles of American coastlines, the beaches would all be 70 feet wider (Douglass, 2002).

Sand also leaves the beach due to the fact that it is being transported by rivers or streams and this basically means that the reduction of sand is the primary cause of beach erosion. Another determinant of the process is the rising level of seas, which occurs these days due to global warming and the melting of the glaciers.

Beach erosion is important as it affects various aspects of life. First of all, with the disappearance of beaches, the waves of the seas and oceans will move closer to the shore, coming in the end to break in the houses of the residents. It is even possible that entire regions of residential lines on the beaches be destroyed. Then, when these houses are destroyed by the waves (it happens every year and every year, people keep building new houses and further endangering beaches), they release vast amount of debris into the seas and oceans. This then leads to the death of maritime life, either as the animals eat the noxious substances, either they get caught in the various debris. When the waves come closer and break into the rocks, they also kill the animals living in this habitat, such as clams, mussels or barnacles. Also, turtles such as the Pacific Loggerhead turtle are likely to become extinct as their nesting beaches are eroded. Crabs and other small animals are also being killed as a result of beach erosion. Ultimately then, beach erosion destroys the health of the natural environment from numerous perspectives and it also generates problems for humanity.

4. What Can Be Done?

Scott Douglass wrote a short and concise recipe for saving the American beaches from erosion. It sees that the populations reduce their negative effects upon beaches by reducing their 'noxious' activities such as dumping waste or building house onto the beaches, bringing more sand onto the beaches and combining these endeavors with additional actions to nourishing the beaches:

Drake Martin also suggests the bringing of additional sand onto the beaches, but argues that the endeavor would total up to a sum of $150 million per annum. Another potential solution refers to the creation of rivers that could drag sand to the desired locations through natural processes. However, the action would take long times to generate the desired results and risks of river deviation also exist. Third, we could build breakwaters, systems placed in the seas and oceans to limit the negative effects of waves. Finally, the population needs to stop building on the beaches, but it is rather difficult to convince individuals to give up the comfort of beachfront houses.

5. Conclusions

The common misperception of beach erosion is that the process is a natural one and there is nothing we can do about it. Today however, the principal determinate of beach erosion is in fact the human factor, rather than the natural one. And sadly enough, several beaches are likely to disappear entirely in the future if we fail to take immediate action.

Works Cited:

Douglass, S.L., 2002, Saving America's Beaches: The Causes of and Solutions to Beach Erosion, 19th Edition, World Scientific

Drake, M., 2007, History of Beach Erosion, http://drake.marin.k12.ca.us/stuwork/rockwater/Beach%20Erosion%20-%20Water%20Project/Webpage-History%20of%20beach%20erosion.html last accessed on April 2, 2009

Wheeler, W.H., 2008, the Sea-Coast: (1) Destruction, (2) Littoral Drift, (3) Protection, BiblioBazaar LLC