Florida's Endless Cycle Of Artificial Beach Rebuilding; Flagler CO Wanted Federal Gov To Pay

[hatrack]

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Costs of so-called beach renourishments are a fraction of the total, measured in hundreds of millions of dollars, but the effort is crucial for Florida’s $67 billion tourism industry. And while sand needs are surging, there is not enough to go around. “It’s like the slow progression of tooth decay versus a fight where someone knocks out your teeth all at once,” Flagler County Administrator Craig Coffey said, referring to sand lost during Irma and Hurricane Matthew, which buffeted Florida’s coast in October 2016.

With the longest coastline of any mainland U.S. state, more money and time is spent fixing up Florida’s shores - widening and building dunes - than in any other state. But after seven decades of rebuilding its beaches, the state is now struggling with sand shortages, rising costs and tight public funds even during calmer years. The quick succession of powerful storms makes the challenges even more daunting.

By one estimate, based on a sample of beaches, Irma knocked out four times the amount of sand Matthew displaced, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers spokesman John Campbell said. Matthew was already considered one of the worst storms in recent memory.

As weather patterns change and coastal development increases, more states have rolled out programs to counter beach erosion over the past five years.

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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-florida-storm-beaches/gone-with-the-wind-storms-deepen-floridas-beach-sand-crunch-idUSKCN1G00W4

[mountain grammy]

1. Definitely not a long term solution.