3/27/12
Both Coasts Watch
Closely as San Francisco Faces Erosion
Picture:
This graphic shows a
huge chunk of sand and the road being eroded from Ocean Beach in San Francisco.
It shows the Great Highway, a road along the coast, having parts of it eroded and
into pieces. This clearly shows how big of an effect erosion has on many coasts
around the world.
Summarize:
Along
the coast in Ocean Beach, San Francisco there are problems with erosion eroding
away much of the sand and roads along the coast. California officials are worried
about the erosion especially because they expect to see sea levels going up to
14 inches by 2050. The San Francisco
State study says that sea levels going up will impose a cost of $650
million by 2100 if nothing is done about the erosion. There are three options
that are available to choose from to take on the situation. The options are to
keep installing hard structures in areas of vulnerability, replenish the sand
or just letting the erosion take place without doing anything about it. Environmentalists
are preferring to replenish the coast with sand in trying to mimic how the
coast was before. They prefer this option in order to maintain species survival.
Out of the three options the second one is the least in cost and better for the
time now.
Opinion/Reflection:
I cannot believe that erosion
could be this powerful and harmful to the Earth. Though, I find it interesting
that coasts and beaches show up on T.V. but they do not talk about what erosion
is doing to our important coasts. I have gone swimming before along the beaches
in New Jersey but I find it difficult to see a nice place like that being
washed away like in Ocean Beach, San Francisco. The inference of the sea levels
going up to 14 inches by 2050 seems very high and I cannot imagine how high it
will be for other coasts around the world. It worries me to see that land is
being taken by water and what the future will look like for our country or
other countries around the world if nothing is done about. Though luckily there
are people coming up with ideas to solve the problem.
Questions:
1. What are some ways we can help lessen erosion or erosion's effects on the coast? What will this do for Humans or other organisms?
2. Why is erosion not as big of an issue than other issues such as endangered species when it is taking away the very land you're living on?
3. Why is it so important to conserve the coast? Explain.
Questions:
1. What are some ways we can help lessen erosion or erosion's effects on the coast? What will this do for Humans or other organisms?
2. Why is erosion not as big of an issue than other issues such as endangered species when it is taking away the very land you're living on?
3. Why is it so important to conserve the coast? Explain.
Opinion/Reflection:
ReplyDeleteThe beach is an interesting boundary zone, the buffer between land and sea, man and nature. That situation makes the beach—that boundary zone—a zone of environmental conflict as well. The ocean is a huge force of nature, regulated by moon and tides and the earth’s rotation, a force which pays very little attention to human intentions and wishes. Where the ocean and human habitation collide—at the beach—all resolutions are temporary. They cannot be final. No structure we can build will serve all interests and be permanent. The arrangement of sewage pipe lines and public beaches and ocean habitat for whatever species must be a for now thing. That reality is the core of the problem. The various interest groups have opposing goals and aspirations. What serves one aspiration denies another. For example, protecting the Great Highway against flooding and erosion—building the necessary buffers—goes against surfing interest and environmental and habitat needs for various birds. In the end, there is a potential compromise, but this solution can only take us so far with this force of nature. No matter what is decided, it will not last long and it can not help every problem.
Questions:
1) Are the suggested short-term solutions for beach erosion really worth doing?
2) Is it possible to come up with a solution that is fair when you are trying to juggle fundamentally different concerns—surfing and recreational wishes, economics, the environment, historical sites, housing patterns, and forces of nature?
3) How do you balance long term and short term options?
4) How can we improve the science of predicting ocean patterns and storms?
OPINION/REFLECTION: I agree with Jung that the second option is the most ethical and logical. One, it is better for the environment in which species will not have to adapt quickly to the frequent erosion of the beach if the sand is replenished. Second, the government is always worried about money and this option is the cheapest out of the three. Hopefully, the replenishing of the sand to mimic how the coast looked before will come into action soon, because sometimes things are said but not done until it is too late. I have been to San Francisco and Los Angeles, California, and the beaches are beautiful there. But, this erosion could ruin it costing lots of money and lots of sadness since a trademark (California Beaches) will be doomed. The raising ocean levels can also affect our drinking water since it is creeping inland and could spill into our fresh surface water, as we learned in class. So, to save a lot of lives, money, and time the government should initiate option two, and start replenishing sand to beaches.
ReplyDeleteQUESTION 2: I believe erosion is overlooked because we are already worried about lives being gone, such as endangered species. All of our conservation efforts are pinpointed on saving these species, or their habitat. Also, many countries are already making efforts to stop polluting the air and reducing the greenhouse gas effects, that is actually raising the ocean levels. If we fix this, then the ocean erosion problem may be solved. But if that fails, one trait of our race will show, which is that we often act when it is too late. So when the erosion starts to threaten or endanger lives, then we will make it a big issue about it, which may make it a tragedy that is too late to solve.
Opinion/Reflection:
ReplyDeleteThe ocean is a strong force of nature, and is powerful enough to erode beaches and coastline. This is astonishing to think about, and it happens so slowly that 14 inches by 2050 seems slow. Many people should go to the beach, measure 14 inches up, and see where that is on ground level parallel. That makes is sound like a much bigger deal. I personally thought that 14 inches just ment 14 inches from where the water touches the beach, but that is nothing close. If everybody saw this, then im sure it would be more talked about and we would be closer to a solution. The second idea does seem best. Returning nature to it's former glory and saving money pleases both the government and environmentalists. I've been to Jersey beaches, and I know how much more beautiful they could be if the government protected erosion from wiping out the beach.
Answer to Question 3
It's important to protect the coasts because the coasts serve as homes for many species as well as humans. If we let erosion keep on happening without doing anything, eventually cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York will become the beachfront, and further after that underwater. Not only does protecting the coast protect us, but it also protects species. Species which can't move from their habitats will be eliminated if the coast isn't constantly restored. Also turtles, which lay their eggs on beaches, will have to adapt to going to new beaches and overcome obstacles which they never had to before.
Opinion/Reflection:
ReplyDeleteThis stinks that the beach and roads are getting eroded over in San Francisco. I love going to the beach and swimming in the ocean and playing on the sand. I can imagine that the people in San Francisco like to go to the beach and aren’t happy about the erosion either. It’s unbelievable how fast the water is rising. The sea levels will go up 14 inches by 2050. It is good how the government is trying to stop it erosion and replenish beaches. The cheapest option for them is to put sand where the roads or beach has eroded, which is a great idea. Also many species live on the beaches and shores and if their habitats are destroyed they will die. Even though the options are costly they will help in the long run.
Answer for question 3- Why is it so important to conserve the coast?
It’s important because of all the wildlife and habitats on there. Animals such as turtles can only lay eggs and can become extinct there. Also humans need the coast. The coast helps stop floods and hurricanes from doing damage to people’s homes are hurting anyone. Besides like in the picture look what happened to the road. If that keeps happening they will have to build new roads which will be expensive. The roads could collapse all the sudden and hurt people so they could be safety hazards. Overall protecting the coast is very important and it should be done.