New Jersey Meeting Weighs Role of Rising Seas in
Coastal Erosion and Flooding
Through years of watching their beaches crumble and wash away
and following strenuous efforts to halt the damage, the ocean
front communities of New Jersey do not necessarily agree on solutions,
but the various factions, or at least those represented in a November
1997 Conference, have arrived at a point where they can speak
civilly to each other about their serious common problems. The
one-day Conference, “Coastal Hazards, Changing Climate, and
the New Jersey Shore,” held at Toms River, the capital of
Ocean County , and sponsored by the US Environmental Protection
Agency, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection,
the New Jersey Sea Grant College Program and the Climate Institute,
drew 175 representatives of state and local government, property
owners, some who came to observe, and some to rebut.
Scientists, engineers and many local planners see coastal erosion
and flooding as a serious issue but previously viewed the concept
of sea level rise as a codeword for “retreat,” giving
up protective measures for the barrier island communities.There
has been polarization in the past between some mayors and public
officials who favor public expenditures to hold back the sea and
other public officials and some scientists who are skeptical about
erosion-fighting programs. There were those who believed people
should not be allowed to rebuild in hazardous areas and those
who would not forbid them to build as long as they did not ask
for recompense when they got into trouble. One group has felt
property owners should not be compensated if they are forbidden
to rebuild, and others say it is unconstitutional to take property
without compensation.
The November 1997 meeting helped to demonstrate that the issue
of sea level rise is more than a retreat slogan; it is an important
environmental condition that underlies many of the erosion and
flooding problems faced in the coastal zone. Speaker after speaker
agreed that the implications of sea level rise must be considered
to ensure the success of policies to protect wetlands, beaches,
and coastal homes.
The ocean counties affirmed their intent to hold the line on
their residential land and on all developed areas; no one at the
conference advocated drawing back. They discussed elevating buildings
and redoing drainage systems; no decisions were reached on how
to treat undeveloped areas.
Sea levels continue to rise and will accelerate, said Michael
Weinstein, and a coastal partnership will be needed to deal with
the problems the rising ocean will bring to New Jersey’s
127-mile coastline. Various sectors of the coastal zone - tourism,
fishing, the salt marshes which nurture many young fish, health,
water supply and the threat of rising insurance rates - are all
important to the state’s economy. These sectors face the
peril of a 15-inch sea level rise over the past century and up
to a possible 6-foot rise in the next century.
Since 1980, six nor’easters have hit the built-up New Jersey
coastline, Weinstein, President of the New Jersey Marine Sciences
Consortium, pointed out, plus several hurricanes. The coast is
constantly changing, and flooding is increasing in area and damage.
Although Dr. Weinstein did not foresee answers coming out of the
conference, he urged cooperation among the coastal stakeholders.
After a welcome by George Whitman, Mayor of Toms River, Dover
Township, John Bailey Lloyd, author of several books chronicling
the past of Long Beach Island, recounted the history of the New
Jersey shore back to colonial times, illustrated by a wealth of
photos and maps. (The pictures on pages 1, 3, 4 and 5 are all
from his book Eighteen Miles of History on Long Beach Island and
are used with his kind permission.) He described the years from
1870 to 1920 as a time of “insouciance” when no storms
struck, and pavilions were built up and down the coast. Ferocious
storms followed the 50-year lull: a Great Nor’easter tore
off one end of the Haddock House hotel in 1920, a severe hurricane
washed out all the timber jetties in 1944, another large storm
struck in March ‘62. But there was not the storm frequency
experienced in the 1980s and early 90s.
A number of human influences are at work changing the impact
of climate, reported Jim Titus, a coastal property owner and a
lead author of the recent IPCC Regional Assessment of Climate
Change. In an overview of the future impacts of global warming
he said average global temperatures are rising consistent with
the buildup of greenhouse gases. The warming is not uniform: the
eastern United States has actually cooled slightly because it
is beneath a cloud of sulfates resulting from combustion of high-sulfur
coal. Moreover, satellite observations show that temperatures
in the middle of the troposphere have stayed constant at roughly
4 degrees C. But the surface of the earth is warming, he stated,
and continued warming is likely to raise the sea by expanding
ocean water, melting mountain glaciers, and perhaps eventually
causing polar ice sheets to disintegrate. Warmer temperatures
are also increasing annual rainfall and the frequency of severe
rainstorms.
Before discussing the impacts of rising seas, Titus showed a
picture of his family’s house on Long Beach Island, New Jersey
and showed the portion of the house that would be underwater during
a storm if sea level rises as projected. “But my grandfather
built this house with all of the money he didn’t lose during
the bank failures of the Great Depression and even if the sea
rises a few feet, I am not selling my house. Is anybody in this
room going to sell their house because of the rising sea?”
he asked. After hearing a chorus of ”nos” he continued,
“Does anyone here think that the developed barrier islands
of New Jersey need to retreat because of rising sea level?”
There was no assent. “Then since we are all going to stay.
We are going to have to deal with the issue of rising seas.”
Sea level along the New Jersey shore has been rising at the rate
of one foot per century. Although many people have focused on
ocean beach erosion, wetlands and bay beaches also erode, Titus
pointed out. Higher sea level is also increasing the risk of flooding,
particularly along Barnegat and other back barrier bays. Besides
thermal stress and lower dissolved oxygen levels, pollution is
mounting and salinity in the Bay is growing.
Although sea level has important effects, there are many opportunities
to respond, he continued. Along the barrier islands the most practical
solution is to gradually bring in fill to raise the level of the
whole island; this is already being done on the ocean side with
the beach nourishment. Along estuarine shores, this solution would
also protect property; but it may not be very effective at protecting
wetlands.
“When we say we oppose retreat, of course, we are referring
to the ocean beach. No one ever said that we have to hold back
the sea to protect undeveloped farmland along Delaware Bay,”
he stated. Several states currently are using setbacks based on
current erosion rates. Another approach is the rolling easement,
under which property owners are allowed to build along the shore,
but are not allowed to stop the natural inland migration of wetlands
or other ecosystems. Pointing out that the state and county plans
already have decided which land should be urban and which land
open space, Titus suggested that the coastal land use plans should
also indicate which land will be protected and which shores will
be allowed to migrate. This would be totally consistent with the
current State and County cross-acceptance planning effort, involving
both the DEP and the Office of State Planning, Titus said.
Decision makers should take into account the changing dynamics,
the fact that change is taking place at an increasing rate, said
Norbert Psuty of the Rutgers Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences.
“They need to worry right now,” he emphasized. Barrier
islands are drowning on both sides, inundated by both rising waters
of the ocean and the Bay. This brings greater frequency of flooding
and less clearance for bridges. The sea level is rising faster
than sediment can be delivered, exposing the wetlands to greater
storm damage, and reducing the barrier islands and marshes naturally.
A storm with major flooding and damage which would formerly have
been rated a one-hundred-year storm now appears every 30 years.
There is general inundation at the water’s edge: deeper water
offshore causes higher wave energies at the beach, mobilizes more
sand. The areas with no buffer will experience changes first and
most dramatically.
Beach nourishment is a reasonable alternative if seas rise no
higher than an average of two feet per century, said Dr. Bernard
Moore of New Jersey’s Bureau of Coastal Engineering. But
if they rise more rapidly, an effort to maintain beaches by adding
more sand would not be cost effective.
Different communities could cope in different ways, he suggested.
In the Back Bay area of Ocean City, roads could be raised and
there could be increased protection around homes. Route 30 in
Atlantic City could be elevated and the bulkhead in the Back Bay
area could be raised 3 to 5 feet, “an expensive option, but
it could be done.” Replacing one foot of sand along the whole
New Jersey shoreline would cost $950 million dollars, he estimated.
It is possible to spray material to a depth of one inch to build
up wetlands. This has been tried in Florida and Louisiana but
not in New Jersey. “It looks bad for a while,” Dr. Moore
commented.
How long would the protection from newly pumped sand last or
could it wash away in one storm? one particpant asked. In a normal
storm, there would be damage but on the whole the beach would
be protected, Moore answered. On higher shorelines, the cycle
of nourishment would be every 6 years. Ocean City has a 2 1/2
to 3 year renourishment cycle.
Fitting sea level rise into coastal management is complex, involving
creating and stabilizing dunes, beach nourishment, protection
against erosion and flooding, and preserving wetlands. After a
destructive 1984 nor’easter which caused over $600,000 damage
to the boardwalk alone, Lavallette Borough reestablished dunes
along the ocean front and measured their protective value. They
proved so effective that construction was extended along the entire
borough ocean front, said Mark Mauriello of the Bureau of Coastal
Regulation which helps to administer the Coastal Area Review Facilities
Act, including regulation of development along the dunes and a
very active beach nourishment program to establish dunes, stabilize
the sand and control planting.
Using bulkheads to protect against erosion results in lost beaches
and wetlands and erosion of neighboring properties, according
to Mauriello. The Department of Environmental Protection has now
developed techniques to minimize impacts, such as vegetative stabilization
and sloped rip-revetments. Alternative stabilization facilitates
greater preservation of the natural waters edging the beach, reduces
erosion, helps sustain wetlands.
The Borough of Mantaloking has passed an ordinance requiring
that all new or reconstructed dwellings on the ocean front be
set back beyond a projected 30-foot erosion area. Flood protection
is a real challenge, especially when roads have no place to drain.
However, houses can be elevated and anchored. “The important
thing is to plan ahead,” said Mauriello. “Don’t
wait for the damage to occur. Take advantage of opportunities
in less developed areas.” More dunes are being enhanced,
he said, more houses are being moved back. There are many small
successes, and many small victories add up to big victories.
In remarks about the effect of sea level rise on birds, Joanna
Burger of Rutgers University expressed some skepticism about whether
global warming is actually occurring. But assuming it does, she
indicated sea level rise affects birds in their many activities:
breeding, foraging and migrating. An increase in the water level
brings more competition among species as they fight for dwindling
space. It leads to flooding at high tide, killing nesting species.
If beaches are eliminated, so is the egg-laying of horseshoe crabs,
the food base of many birds.
Sea level rise and the overfishing of horseshoe crabs could thus
cause large declines in population of shorebirds migrating along
Delaware Bay because they shrink both the habitat and available
prey- the crab’s eggs. Over a million birds fly over Delaware
Bay in their annual migration north. As a possible consequence
of shrinking sources of food, between 1986 and today the number
of birds migrating through Delaware Bay has declined drastically,
Burger reported.
For most species, including the birds that nest alone - the ducks,
piping plovers and oystercatchers - the increased flooding, dwindling
habitats, com-petition for nest sites, and expanding predation
from herring gulls signal the bundle of troubles which will grow
as climate shifts.
Fish also are at risk, from changes in water temperature, salinity,
precipitation patterns as well as the level of the sea, said David
Nemerson of Rutgers University Marine Field Station. If warming
causes the range of some species to shift north, their food webs
are altered and their habitats are lost. From 50 to 70 percent
of New Jersey’s commercial fish species depend on estuaries
and tidal marshes which form the nurseries for fluke, flounder,
striped bass, bluefish, weakfish and also the horseshoe crab.
The estuaries and marshes are also the adult living space for
blue crab, oysters, clams and forage species.
More severe storms and droughts will make habitat conditions
in estuaries more variable and extreme when floods cause big drops
in salinity, and droughts cause salinity and elevated temperatures
to move up the estuary toward sources of fresh water. The populations
of fish and shellfish will suffer further stress. Nemerson recommended
that, where possible, beaches and marshes be allowed to migrate,
and land not now developed be preserved to make room for further
sea level rise. He also suggested adjusting water management criteria
to reduce pulses of salinity and fresh water.
In a panel on combating sea level rise by reducing CO2 emissions,
John Topping, President of the Climate Institute, pointed out
that urbanization of the third world has grown five times since
1950, and will triple again by 2050, a completely unsustainable
rate. He urged concentration on the energy needs of the two billion
people who have no access to electricity from the grid to discourage
urban migration.
He called attention to the huge gains in renewable energy in
the private sector in the last 6 months: 1) the movement into
wind and solar technologies by Enron, a large US natural gas supplier,
2) a Japanese company financing wind turbines in Denmark, 3) British
Petroleum committing itself to investment in solar power, and
4) Toyota developing a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. Meanwhile EPA
is working closely with industry to develop greater energy efficiency.
He recommended overhaul of World Bank policies and a change in
industrial countries’ R&D investment priorities away
from fossil fuels and toward renewables and energy efficiency
technology.
The best way to steer people into lowering CO2 emissions is by
enlisting market forces, said David Bardin of a Washington law
firm and a former Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of
Environmental Protection. Mechanisms can be designed to make it
more attractive for the various sectors to work together. The
third world can be pushed into buying the most efficient systems,
not just cast-offs. China can consider natural gas supply and
turbine technology.
Industry can help to reduce the loss between the energy generator
and the user with little additional expense. Other options include
encouraging evolution of technology by subsidizing it, or using
the influence of consumer choice. The environmental community
faces some tough choices, said Bardin, and he advised not to urge
phasing out nuclear energy too rapidly.
The most rational long-term approach is to work seriously to
improve energy efficiency, said Marika Tatsutani of the Northeast
States for Coordinated Air Use Management.
The first impact of climate change is likely to be in the frequency
and severity of coastal storms, said Michael Bruno of Davidson
Laboratory and Stevens Institute of Technology. They force us
to realize that beach nourishment has become more complex. Background
erosion rates - previously considered gradual and constant - may
no longer be valid criteria. The December 1992 storm did an incredible
amount of damage in only 72 hours. When such storms come in clusters,
the beaches have no time to recover and may suffer permanent damage.
In a final stakeholders panel, Derry Bennett, executive director
of the American Littoral Society, expressed delight in seeing
the conference’s focus on bay beaches, estuaries and bays
and on biological impacts. In contrast, the beaches of the Atlantic
coast will take care of themselves, he said. He commented that
overwash of the barrier islands has benefits: new wetlands which
are younger and more productive develop on the back of the barriers,
an effect lost if barrier islands are stabilized.
While revetments are better than bulkheads, he said neither are
as good as natural marsh edge. He expressed reluctance about endorsing
raising the land level one inch every ten years because of its
expense. We should concentrate on climate change impacts before
they occur, he concluded, and should expand education about sea
level rise.
Mayor Malcolm Fraser, six-term mayor of Cape May, related the
many vicissitudes of Cape May Point over the years, as it has
lost land to erosion. Rock jetties proved unsuccessful and were
eventually replaced by a dune system which has been very effective
protection on the Delaware Bay side. Because littoral drift had
been stopped by jetties, in 1994 a Beachsaver reef was developed,
a very innovative flexible sea wall just offshore. The wave energy
is deflated as the waves pass over a reef and drop their sand.
They no longer strike with force against the dunes, and the dunes
have suffered no loss in the Beachsaver area. The combination
of decreased wave energy, less littoral drift and sturdy protective
dunes has worked to keep Cape May Point fortified and saved for
the grandchildren.
Long Beach Township took a different protective approach, said
Mayor James Mancini, who has been mayor for 37 years. In the oft-mentioned
1962 storm, the township lost 600 houses and all of its beaches.
But the town rebuilt its entire 18 miles of beach, pumping the
sand from Barnegat Bay (not a practice it would repeat today).
Now the beaches are larger than in 1961 and are constantly nourished
with sand that is trucked in, not pumped. Houses must be built
on piles, above the minimum flood level. No house has been lost
since ‘62.
He stated that it is too early to say precisely what to do next,
but he had no problem with the idea of planners and engineers
undertaking “what if” studies to futher understanding
of the issues. We should not develop virgin areas, said Mancini,
who is also a freeholder of Ocean County. And we should never
talk about “retreat” or what we will do in 100 years;
it is too far off to be dealt with.
From still another perspective, Ken Smith, President of Coastal
Advocates Inc., a lobbying group representing coastal property
owners and several municipalities to ensure implementation of
rational solutions. He urged holding off on major policy decisions
for the next 40 or 50 years. “I think we have time to monitor
this issue,” he declared. “The coast is not drowning.”
First we must assess what people want. As of now, they want beaches,
and therefore nourishment is important. Watershed management,
public access, tourism, property rights are all important, and
we should forgo rhetoric about threats of change and consider
these very specific, near-term issues, he said.
After the 1962 storm, Harry de Buts, director of the Borough
of Avalon, described the building of a splash wall to keep water
from coming over the sea wall. The city tore down its town hall
and elevated it. Nine underground pumping stations (costing $1
million) were installed for greater than 25-year storms. High
dunes have been built and beaches have been filled five times,
at a cost of $1.5 million a shot.
