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We Are Running Out of Sand
HughPickens.com writes John R. Gillis writes in the NYT that to those of us who visit beaches only in summer, beaches seem as permanent a part of our natural heritage as the Rocky Mountains but shore dwellers know that beaches are the most transitory of landscapes, and sand beaches the most vulnerable of all. Today, 75 to 90 percent of the world's natural sand beaches are disappearing, due partly to rising sea levels and increased storm action, but also to massive erosion caused by the human development of shores. The extent of this global crisis is obscured because so-called beach nourishment projects attempt to hold sand in place (PDF) and repair the damage by the time summer people return, creating the illusion of an eternal shore. But the market for mined sand in the U.S. has become a billion-dollar annual business, growing at 10 percent a year since 2008. Interior mining operations use huge machines working in open pits to dig down under the earth's surface to get sand left behind by ancient glaciers.
One might think that desert sand would be a ready substitute, but its grains are finer and smoother; they don't adhere to rougher sand grains, and tend to blow away. As a result, the desert state of Dubai brings sand for its beaches all the way from Australia. Huge sand mining operations are emerging worldwide, many of them illegal, happening out of sight and out of mind, as far as the developed world is concerned. "We need to stop taking sand for granted and think of it as an endangered natural resource," concludes Gillis. "Beach replenishment — the mining and trucking and dredging of sand to meet tourist expectations — must be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, with environmental considerations taking top priority. Only this will ensure that the story of the earth will still have subsequent chapters told in grains of sand."
One might think that desert sand would be a ready substitute, but its grains are finer and smoother; they don't adhere to rougher sand grains, and tend to blow away. As a result, the desert state of Dubai brings sand for its beaches all the way from Australia. Huge sand mining operations are emerging worldwide, many of them illegal, happening out of sight and out of mind, as far as the developed world is concerned. "We need to stop taking sand for granted and think of it as an endangered natural resource," concludes Gillis. "Beach replenishment — the mining and trucking and dredging of sand to meet tourist expectations — must be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, with environmental considerations taking top priority. Only this will ensure that the story of the earth will still have subsequent chapters told in grains of sand."
That or we use the climate change deniers as infill ... because assholes like you already have your heads buried in the sand.
Didn't even read the entire summary, did you?
Because, it pretty much says:
But, hey thanks for playing ... here's a copy of the home game, and some lovely parting gifts for you ... these lovely serving spoons!
Lost at C:>. Found at C.
Well, clearly from TFA beaches are being used to the point of disappearing, and from the actions of humans, not just nature. That's how it's working. As can a mountain.
It doesn't hurt to be nice.
I asked in a reasonably factious way, realizing that in any event, dredging the ocean for beach sand would be prohibitively expensive by a long shot.
Not really. They dredge the bottom to replenish beach sand all the time. Pretty much all of the beaches on the Atlantic side of Florida are built out by dredging.
The sand on the beaches naturally moves up and down the shore, making wide beaches and then eroding down to nothing, creating barrier islands and wiping them away. It is only when we stuck a bunch of buildings on the shore and expected everything to stay in one place that this became a problem.
Have you been to Seaside Oregon lately? It's pretty built up.
The law grandfathers existing shoreline development (whatever existed as of 1967).
Also, "right behind" high-tide is a misnomer. Anything new can only be built on land higher than 16' (altitude) above sea level at low-tide, which is much farther back than the mere high-tide mark (which averages around 8'), so unless you're building on a cliff-edge, or a mountainside or suchlike, you're not really going to get a beach view out of your new property...
The state also reserves the right to regulate such land further as needed.
Quo usque tandem abutere, Nimbus, patientia nostra?