Volusia county "Just says no" to beach renourishment

Great article! The beach will do its thing if we give it a chance! Pumping sand makes no sense to me and is very short sighted. We have to begin to look at long term solutions. The state will not continue to fund beach "restoration"!

Here are a few quotes from different people interviewed in that article :clap_1::

"Every time we try, Mother Nature always wins," said County Councilman Carl Persis, who voted against the grant. "We are never going to be able to stop nor'easters, tornadoes, hurricanes, or that strange current coming in right now that's dropping red sand on our beaches."

"Saving the coastline, he said, "is not about putting more sand on the beach."

"it's costly, and it washes away, so it's a recurring cost. And it doesn't produce a good, regular beach."

"Renourishment is bound to be scrutinized when places such as Bethune Beach -- a consistently eroding coastline near Volusia's southern end -- is overwhelmed with sand. A renourishment project didn't put it there -- nature did. Nature's own."

"When you artificially replenish a beach, "you're not saving the beach, because sand moves. What you're saving is houses," said New Smyrna Beach surfer Yogi Oberoi, 34."

"I know it was a million years ago," Oberoi said recently while watching waves lap up to The Breakers restaurant in New Smyrna Beach, "but I don't think they should ever have allowed people to build so close to the beach. It's like building on an earthquake fault."

I take the opposite point of view. Beach renourishment has been a God send to my neighbors and I. Yes, in a perfect world we would rely on nature to "do it's thing" and do it naturally. The problem with that is that we are talking in terms of Geological time which is measured in millions of years. Man has altered the course of nature for his own use ever since he arrived in this country by building roads, bridges , dams, etc. How many dams have been built altering rivers and streams for electric power generation with recreation as a byproduct? Should those be torn down because they are not natural?

Using this same logic, should New Orleans be left back to nature? A lot of our money is being used to build flood walls there since they are below sea level. Should we tear those down? Our project is about $29 million how much is it costing in New Orleans?

I take the opposite point of view. Beach renourishment has been a God send to my neighbors and I. Yes, in a perfect world we would rely on nature to "do it's thing" and do it naturally. The problem with that is that we are talking in terms of Geological time which is measured in millions of years. Man has altered the course of nature for his own use ever since he arrived in this country by building roads, bridges , dams, etc. How many dams have been built altering rivers and streams for electric power generation with recreation as a byproduct? Should those be torn down because they are not natural?

Using this same logic, should New Orleans be left back to nature? A lot of our money is being used to build flood walls there since they are below sea level. Should we tear those down? Our project is about $29 million how much is it costing in New Orleans?

I understand your view seacliffes. We just differ on our view points.

One could easily say that if man lived in harmony with nature, we wouldn't have problems like we have from our man-made things. New Orleans wouldn't be sinking, but people wouldn't have been living there, either. ;-)

Mother nature will have her way in the end. maybe some day folks will learn and respect this about her and build at a respectful distance from the surf. until then, bring on the sand and seawalls... :roll:

We already have the seawalls! Now we need ocean dredging to pump sand onto the beach! Very good business for the dredge people! But without dredging there will be NO beach..... Thanks to the seawall people!

My only point to this is: The state will not continue to fund it.... It is that simple. We will have more sand pumped and storms will take it away and one day they will go, "Wow, we can not keep doing this"!

Here are a few quotes from different people interviewed in that article :clap_1::

"Every time we try, Mother Nature always wins," said County Councilman Carl Persis, who voted against the grant. "We are never going to be able to stop nor'easters, tornadoes, hurricanes, or that strange current coming in right now that's dropping red sand on our beaches."

"Saving the coastline, he said, "is not about putting more sand on the beach."

"it's costly, and it washes away, so it's a recurring cost. And it doesn't produce a good, regular beach."

"Renourishment is bound to be scrutinized when places such as Bethune Beach -- a consistently eroding coastline near Volusia's southern end -- is overwhelmed with sand. A renourishment project didn't put it there -- nature did. Nature's own."

"When you artificially replenish a beach, "you're not saving the beach, because sand moves. What you're saving is houses," said New Smyrna Beach surfer Yogi Oberoi, 34."

"I know it was a million years ago," Oberoi said recently while watching waves lap up to The Breakers restaurant in New Smyrna Beach, "but I don't think they should ever have allowed people to build so close to the beach. It's like building on an earthquake fault."

There are seawalls for more than a mile in either direction of the Breakers.

There are seawalls for more than a mile in either direction of the Breakers.

My guess is that we will see more beach sand go out to sea from the erecting of the walls in SoWal.

My guess is that we will see more beach sand go out to sea from the erecting of the walls in SoWal.

Passive erosion 😱

I think this is the way we should go..... http://www.24dash.com/communities/15292.htm
:cool:

I think this is the way we should go..... http://www.24dash.com/communities/15292.htm
:cool:

:clap_1: That made me almost cry!!! It just works. It helps restore the beaches, puts up a line of defense far better then pumping sand and provides another recreational aspect to tourism!!!! Everyone wins!!!!