It's going to be a scary winter for the town of Ocean Shores, Washington, for which the season may bring waves and erosion that threaten to wipe the entire city off the map.
What's happening?
Fox 13 Seattle called Ocean Shores' predicament "a race against nature," describing its position in said race as "significantly behind."
They quoted resident Marshall Read, who described the fear that the town's residents feel every winter.
"We held our breath. Storm after storm after storm," Read said. But despite their awareness of the situation, he explained that they're lagging in efforts to combat the erosion. "We are 15–20 years behind what has occurred out at Washaway Beach," he said, referencing another town that was completely consumed after its shoreline eroded into the sea.
Just last winter, Ocean Shores watched 30-40 yards of shoreline disappear under the waves. And as the community steels itself for the coming winter, worries are high.
"This winter, we're either going to succeed or we're going to fail big," Read said.
Why is erosion so concerning?
It's true that erosion is a naturally occurring process, but research shows that human interventions have exacerbated the issue.
In the case of Ocean Shores, a jetty built by the Army Corps of Engineers many years ago is believed to have been part of the problem, Fox 13 noted. While it helped to protect boats, it also interrupted the natural sediment flow for the shoreline.
But this problem is not isolated to Ocean Shores. With a warming planet responsible for rising sea levels, coastal communities around the world are fearful that they will see their homes submerged in their lifetimes — possibly in just the next few years. In several places, this is already a reality.
What's being done?
Fortunately, necessity is the mother of invention, and many people are looking for creative approaches to mitigate the impact of sea level rise on their coastlines.
Some solutions are inherently short-lived, such as Ocean Shores' "sacrificial berm" of sand, made to serve as a temporary protection against the storm season.
In many places, the Army Corps places enormous "super sacks" of sand along the coast, though ultimately, none are immune to the strength of the waves. The issue is further complicated by the fact that many solutions would be incredibly costly and tangled up in slow-moving bureaucratic processes.
Ultimately, the best solution to combat these rising seas is to address the emissions that cause them. And while the lion's share of that effort needs to come from governments and corporations, efforts to reduce pollution and educate others on a grassroots level — even something as simple as opting for solar or ditching single-use plastic products — are also critical.
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