Saving our shifting shores

Storms continually reshape Florida's coast

© 2004 Tallahassee Democrat
9-30-04

By Bruce Ritchie

DEMOCRAT STAFF WRITER

With four hurricanes having hit Florida this year, some of Florida's sand beaches have taken a beating.

Some coastal experts say the sand isn't gone, it's just been washed inland or offshore. State officials are considering projects to put the sand back on the beaches to protect buildings and provide recreation - projects that cost federal, state and local agencies about $90 to $100 million a year in Florida.

Some environmentalists and beach experts question whether the money is being wisely spent over the long term. But some other experts and state officials say the spending helps protect property and provides beach recreation for Florida residents and tourists alike.

"I would guess the amount of money that goes into beach (restoration) is far less than the amount that comes into Florida because people have beautiful beaches to go to," said Todd Walton, director of the Beaches and Shores Resource Center at Florida State University.

Some sand has been washed into yards, streets and buildings near beaches or into bays behind barrier islands, said Paden Woodruff, environmental administrator in the Bureau of Beaches and Coastal Systems at the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. As much as 10 feet of sand is covering some roads to Pensacola Beach.

Some of the sand will be scraped up from property and relocated to the beach, after it has been filtered to remove debris, Woodruff said. DEP is continuing to assess storm damage caused by hurricanes Frances, Ivan and Jeanne.

Other sand has been washed offshore a few hundred yards from the beach. Some of that sand will be returned to beaches in the coming weeks and months by the lapping of waves.

But other offshore sand will be piped onto the shore from large vacuum pumps floating on barges. As DEP continues its assessments of hurricane damage, it may recommend areas where sand pumping is needed, Woodruff said.

Even before this busy hurricane season, Florida was spending $30 million a year from a tax on real-estate documents to pay for beach-restoration projects. Nearly one-third of Florida's 825 miles of sand beaches were experiencing "critical erosion," according to DEP.

Duke University Professor Orrin H. Pilkey says such beach "nourishment" projects encourage more beachfront development that may be unsuitable over time. He said the state won't have the flexibility it needs to deal with sea level rise in the future because of high rises built along the beach

"When you nourish the beach, you encourage all kinds of density and development," said Pilkey, an author of "Living on the Edge of the Gulf: The West Florida and Alabama Coast."

"High rises sprout like mushrooms in Florida," he said.

David Godfrey, executive director of the Caribbean Conservation Corp. in Gainesville, said sand-pumping is needed in some areas to replace sand that was lost because of the hurricanes. But Godfrey, whose non-profit group advocates sea turtle protection, said the state should hold a summit to discuss the future of its coastline.

Florida should reconsider its coastal development policies that make it too easy to build sea walls, which are intended to reduce erosion but can actually make it worse for other nearby property owners, he said. The sand-pumping, Godfrey said, allow some ills of coastal development to continue without being fixed.

"I don't know what the answer is," Godfrey said. "Never-ending beach renourishment is not the answer. Lining the coast with sea walls is not the answer."

Woodruff says he doesn't think a summit is necessary. He said the state already has plans, laws and policies for protecting the coastline, despite the hurricanes that have hit Florida this year.

"I think this is a very unusual situation and an unfortunate situation," he said. "But the state of Florida is strong. The coastal system is relatively healthy. We will get through this."

Woodruff and FSU's Walton also said beach restoration makes good financial sense.

The beach projects also helped protect property. In Pensacola Beach, where the state spent $20 million in 2003 to pump sand on 8½ miles of beach, the state expects to see less damage than would have occurred without the restoration project, Woodruff said.

In 2002, out-of-state beach visitors spent $19.3 billion, including $600 million state in sales taxes. Those visitors also helped create 500,000 jobs, Woodruff said.

"For every $1 we spend on beach restoration in Florida, we receive about $8 in revenue return," he said. "It is a pretty good benefit-to-cost ratio."

Media Contact: Tim Lucas, 919-613-8084; tdlucas@duke.edu