40 percent of O`ahu, Hawai`i beaches could be lost by mid-century
(WorldNews Environment)

The reactive and piecemeal approach historically used to manage beaches in Hawai`i has failed to protect them. If policies are not changed, as much as 40% of all beaches on O`ahu, Hawai`i could be lost before mid-century, according to a new study by researchers in the Coastal Geology Group at the University of Hawai`i (UH) at Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST). In an era of rising sea level, beaches need to migrate landward, otherwise they drown. Beach migration, also known as shoreline retreat, causes coastal erosion of private and public beachfront property. Shoreline hardening, the construction of seawalls or revetments, interrupts natural beach...