KAANAPALI — The Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for a $9 million to $13 million beach restoration and berm enhancement project at Kaanapali Beach has been submitted to Gov. David Ige for approval. The state Department of Land and Natural Resources partnered with the Kaanapali Operations Association in the preparation of the EIS. The EIS… Read More
ST. LUCIE COUNTY, Fla. — Golfers know to avoid the sand. But in St. Lucie County, there’s a new “sand trap” project underway designed to keep the county’s beaches wide in the future, while narrowing the cost. Every year, Mother Nature uses the Atlantic Ocean to carve her way across the south end of Jetty… Read More
DEL MAR — Work began last week on Phase II of the San Dieguito Lagoon Wetland Restoration project intended to create a new trail connection, expand river habitat and convert former agricultural fields to tidal wetlands. The San Diego Association of Governments, the California Department of Transportation and the San Dieguito River Park Joint Powers… Read More
Protecting the lifestyle and economy of the City of Charleston from flooding, storm damage, and long-term sea level rise will be the primary, never-ending challenge for elected officials, city staff, and engaged citizens for the foreseeable future. The hazards include rain-driven flooding, king tide flooding, storm surge flooding, and continued development of the flood plain…. Read More
For more than three decades, South Carolina law has prohibited property owners from building new sea walls on the beaches of our barrier islands. It’s also restricted the use of sandbags to approaching hurricanes and similar emergencies. The law is part of a well-known, and well-litigated, strategy to project and preserve our white sandy beaches,… Read More
Gov. Kathy Hochul on Jan. 5 announced a plan to strengthen New York’s renewable energy leadership and make a nation-leading $500 million investment in offshore wind manufacturing as part of the 2022 State of the State. This plan will directly invest in offshore wind manufacturing and supply chain infrastructure, create thousands of good-paying green jobs,… Read More
Editor’s note: Across the National Park System there are a number of threats that strike at a park’s integrity. At Fire Island National Seashore in New York, the dual threats of climate change and growing popularity put the seashore’s future at risk and landed it on National Parks Traveler’s 3rd Annual Threatened and Endangered Parks… Read More
TOPSAIL ISLAND — “Some people don’t believe it when you say climate change, but it’s here,” Surf City Mayor Doug Medlin said. He was speaking at a Dec. 15 open house for the Resilient Coastal Communities Program (RCCP), a statewide effort Topsail Island was accepted into. To mitigate the predicted effects of sea level rising… Read More
The storm-swept beaches of the Outer Banks will soon be replenished with millions of tons of sand from the Continental Shelf. The Dare County Board of Commissioners, at the year’s first meeting Jan. 3, hired a Louisiana company to pump sand from offshore onto the beaches of Duck, Southern Shores, Kitty Hawk and Kill Devil… Read More
A recently published study examining the effects of Hurricane Florence on the lower Neuse River reveals how one river system adapted to the type of coastal storm forecasted to be the norm of future hurricane seasons. Jonathan Phillips, an adjunct professor in East Carolina University’s Department of Geography, Planning and Environment, began examining the lower… Read More
The Baker-Polito Administration announced the release of the final 2021 Massachusetts Ocean Management Plan. Authorized by the Oceans Act of 2008, the ocean plan protects critical marine habitat and important water-dependent uses, and sets standards for ocean-based development. Under the Oceans Act, the ocean plan is required to be reviewed at least every five years,… Read More
The Coast Guard and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) marine casualty investigators are investigating a December 23 barge allision with the Bayou Ramos Bridge near Morgan City and Amelia, La., on Highway 182. There were no reports of injuries and the incident has been declared a major marine casualty due to property damage initially estimated… Read More
INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Public beach access at Turtle Trail closed this week as work continues to restore the hurricane-damaged beach dunes. Turtle Trail Beach Access, which closed Wednesday, is the latest of the beaches to close after restoration work resumed in November. The work, which began last year, was suspended between April and November because… Read More
Adding just the right amount of sediment to the surface of a Connecticut salt marsh protects coastlines by promoting rapid plant growth, scientists from the University of Connecticut report in a new study published recently in Environmental Engineering. Adding sediment on top of salt marshes helps them stay above sea level as it continues to… Read More
SANDUSKY — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers wasn’t able to carry out dredging for Sandusky’s harbor in 2021 but is on track to resume dredging this year, the agency says. The local Army Corps of Engineers office in Buffalo, New York, issued an annual report on its dredging efforts, which helps keep commerce flowing… Read More