Comments on: Save the Beach or Save Your House: Which Would You Choose?

By: Sarah Courchesne

Sarah Courchesne — Tue, 08 May 2012 19:46:17 +0000

Thanks for tracking this, CLF–you might wish to check out our blog post on the subject?
http://seanetters.wordpress.com/2012/05/08/rhode-island-beach-on-the-brink/

By: Louise

Louise — Fri, 04 May 2012 16:11:35 +0000

We must let nature take its course! We have already destroyed some of our coastlines in the name of progress. Nature gives AND takes away.

By: Tricia Jedele

Tricia Jedele — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 13:55:08 +0000

I would like to thank everyone for their comments, concerns and support. The twin issues of climate change and of preserving RI’s beaches, so valuable for their environmental, economic and – as your comments attest – personal value, are at the core CLF RI’s work. We encourage you to come back to CLF Scoop often for updates on this and other work. We’ll keep you posted on any updates on Matunuck as they develop.

Tricia K Jedele
VP & Director, CLF RI

By: Clay Turnbull

Clay Turnbull — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 20:02:52 +0000

Thanks to this article I’m now aware of a specific community I can follow to see how the community deals with climate change. Twenty years ago or so I worked on sustainable transportation issues as a participant in the American Tour de Sol. A team in the event traveled from Micronesia to bring a message to America. Their ancestral burial grounds were being overtaken by the advancing sea. The productive cropland at the base of island mountains was being inundated by salt water. I could see climate change in the eyes of these people. It made a life altering impression on me. Learning of this community in Rhode Island has a similar impact. I appreciate CLF bringing my attention to this.

By: Roy Bingham

Roy Bingham — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 17:24:39 +0000

This will be one of the hottest topics for debate of the century. It is so important that that we have strategic and long term thinking to find the least painful solutions and I don’t think politicians will be likely to make wise long-term decisions – witness the very limited debate over the decision to invest in the reconstruction of New Orleans. Property along the Rhode Island southern shoreline was almost eliminated by the hurricane of 1938. Now it is densely residential, especially with Summer homes. Yet it has been apparent ever since the hurricane that this is a very fragile area and anyone building on it should not expect their property to last. So now those of us who chose to live in more sustainable locations and to enjoy the southern shore as a place to visit, not as a place to live, may be expected to help pay for massive reconstruction efforts for those who chose to build in unsustainable locations. Or perhaps, nature should take its course?

By: Anita Robertson

Anita Robertson — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 16:39:35 +0000

East Matunuck is the beach we drive to in the summertime – even though it’s 50 miles away. IMHO, RI beaches can’t be beat (except apparently by the sea!).

I made a donation today to help CLF address the issue of beach erosion here, at one of my favorite beaches, and elsewhere. Thank you CLF!

By: Tara

Tara — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 16:28:15 +0000

Continue your difficult and important work! RI’s beaches and oceanfront should continue to have the shared ownership of all Rhode Island’s citizens, not just a handful.

By: Kathryn O'Hare

Kathryn O'Hare — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 15:21:44 +0000

So few people, understand the details, urgency and seriousness of our Matunuck Beach dilemma, one that may well be a sample of similar conditions in other coastline areas around the country. Tricia Jedele’s article, “Save the Beach or Save Your House: Which Would You Choose?”, brings forward the personal impact of this eco-and-life-changing coastal condition, and makes one realize that it will take a community of local residents and businesses, environmentalists, government officials, and concerned citizens everywhere, to find a solution that will protect our land, our environment and the places we love and call home. This should not be about neighbor against neighbor, or residents against government, or uniformed protagonists against environmentalists. All must come together, with knowledge and facts in hand, together developing an informed footprint that may help protect our pristine barrier beaches, our precious ecosystems, and our beloved home towns. Please continue to keep us informed, as CLF is providing scientific research and data that is needed in the equation to help direct a beneficial course of action.

By: Timothy Harwood

Timothy Harwood — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 13:28:46 +0000

Great blog. Go CLF!