Owning oceanfront property is complicated.
It can be a blessing – wonderful views, access to activities, high property values.
It can be a curse – first to feel the effect of storms, sand gets inside the house, sea level rise causes floods.
That curse side of Long Beach waterfront living has been national news for the last few weeks. Our Peninsula neighbors have been battered, first by impacts from not one, but three tropical storms and hurricanes perfectly positioned to pour monster waves through the breakwater break to our south-facing beach, then by something called a Kelvin wave along with super high tides.
Long Beach isn’t the only coastal area being impacted – Huntington Beach has made news, as has the train tracks near San Clemente, and a crack along the Pacific Coast Highway.
But as you know, my focus is on Long Beach.
The monster waves eliminating the Peninsula beach, then ripping up a portion of the boardwalk and exposing the 100-year-old wooden seawall were dramatic and tragic. Homes toppling into the ocean are terrifying.
City crews jumped into action, using sand bags – giant sand bags – and more to try to slow the waves down. Dredging of the Alamitos Bay Channel helped recreate the Peninsula beach. Others offered support and repair help to oceanfront residents.
The quick response to the immediate emergency was admirable. But the larger issue has a much longer timeline and some literally life-changing consequences.
Last week, that Kelvin wave and some very high high tides flooded pretty much anything that was next to ocean-fed water – Marine Stadium, Naples, Horny Corner, etc. The high tide peaked at nearly 2 feet higher than “normal,” whatever that might be now.
Experts are now saying that the tides will be even higher in the next couple of months, when the winter King Tides occur. The Peninsula beach might be wider by then, but it’s a guarantee the seawalls won’t be higher.
I suspect – no, I know – there are some folks out there saying “I told you so.” There’s no malice behind those words, no “they deserved it” meanness. It’s simply fact.
I’ve been writing about the battle to maintain a beach in front of the Peninsula for 35 years now. There have been multiple studies, multiple experiments and plenty of money thrown at the problem. We’ve always gone back to putting more sand there, primarily from the Alamitos Beach area further west.
There’s a scientific explanation for why sand accumulates in the west and disappears in the east (I think it has something to do with the Los Angeles River), but there’s no room for that here.
Let me talk a bit about something called the Climate Resiliency Report. It was completed a decade ago, led by the renowned oceanologist and then-CEO of the Aquarium of the Pacific, Dr. Jerry Schubel. It offered a look at sea level rise in the face of global warming, and suggested what could be done about it.
Not much, it turns out. Absent an abrupt reversal of climate change, projections show the region’s sea levels rising by 11 inches in 2030, 24 inches in 2050, and between 37 inches and 66 inches by 2100. 66 inches is more than 5 feet. That’s not counting things like Kelvin waves during El Ninos or Pacific hurricanes.
This isn’t a “worry about it later” thing. The Naples Improvement Association is seriously considering canceling its annual Christmas Boat Parade this year because of expected high water (boats can’t get under the bridges). You can bet that there are discussions in closed rooms about how to host Summer Olympics rowing events at Marine Stadium if tides push water over the stadium walls.
Don’t be surprised if flood insurance costs more than the mortgage on those waterfront homes soon.
You know that I like to look on the bright side of life, right? I have to admit, I’m having a bit of trouble finding that side at the moment, at least on this issue.
I suppose we could try to put all the houses on stilts. Or maybe we build a wall bigger than that one they’re putting up on the country’s southern border.
I’d really like to find a way to stop global warming, or at least the part mankind is responsible for. The current political climate (pun intended) does not bode well for that, though.
Dr. Schubel told me this a decade ago:
“Residents can continue living on Naples and the Peninsula for several decades as long as you’re willing to experience occasional flooding. … Sea level rise is accelerating. It will continue to rise throughout this century and beyond no matter what we do. … I think we need to make an orderly exit from the coast in these areas like the Peninsula and Naples.”
Here’s hoping some of our creative scientific types come up with a solution to at least slow down the loss of our (normally) beautiful waterfront.
I’ll be saying a prayer. How about you?
Has the water subsided at the Marine