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Full Description
The Last Beach is an urgent call to save the world's beaches while there is still time. The geologists Orrin H. Pilkey and J. Andrew G. Cooper sound the alarm in this frank assessment of our current relationship with beaches and their grim future if we do not change the way we understand and treat our irreplaceable shores. Combining case studies and anecdotes from around the world, they argue that many of the world's developed beaches, including some in Florida and in Spain, are virtually doomed and that we must act immediately to save imperiled beaches.
After explaining beaches as dynamic ecosystems, Pilkey and Cooper assess the harm done by dense oceanfront development accompanied by the construction of massive seawalls to protect new buildings from a shoreline that encroaches as sea levels rise. They discuss the toll taken by sand mining, trash that washes up on beaches, and pollution, which has contaminated not only the water but also, surprisingly, the sand. Acknowledging the challenge of reconciling our actions with our love of beaches, the geologists offer suggestions for reversing course, insisting that given the space, beaches can take care of themselves and provide us with multiple benefits.
Contents
Foreword vii
Preface xi
Acknowledgments xvii
1. The End is Nigh! 1
2. Selling the Family Silver: Beach-Sand Mining 24
3. Indefensible: Hard Structures on Soft Sand 41
4. Patch-up Jobs: Beach Replinishment 70
5. The Plastisphere: Trash on the Beach 95
6. Tar Balls and Magic Pipes 107
7. Stuck in a Rut: Driving on the Beach 123
8. The Enemy Within: Beach Pollution 139
9. The International Dimension of Beach Destruction 160
10. The End is Here 175
Appendix 1 199
Appendix 2 203
Bibliography 207
Index 233
