VOICES FROM THE BLUFF
SBPF Speaks AN INDEPENDENT SERIES
Bill Holding, Jr. 6 Bayberry Lane

This week The Nantucket Independent begins a series of interviews with members of the Siasconset Beach Preservation Fund to get behind the meeting rhetoric and to learn why they joined the fight to slow erosion of the Bluff in 'Sconset. Each week through early September, you will read in their words their reasons for going forward with the proposed beach nourishment project and their opinions about the environmental impacts of the erosion control project. As always, we welcome your comments and letters to the editor.

Where is your house in relation to the Bluff?

"We live in an old house that belonged to my wife's grandmother. It's inland from the bluff and hopefully not threatened from erosion for several more generations."

How long have you been a member of SBPF?

"I got involved about three years ago."

Why did you join?

"While our home is not at risk, there are many historic properties in 'Sconset that are threatened today including homes along Baxter Road and in Codfish Park, as well as the Bluff Walk up to Sankaty Lighthouse. I think it would be a big loss to 'Sconset and the island if these old properties were to disappear. But more importantly, while the spotlight is on 'Sconset now, it's been on Madaket in the past and who knows where it will move next? The beaches continue to pull back at Dionis and the south shore, and an increasing number of public and private properties are going to be at risk."

Respond to the following statement in whatever way you feel is appropriate: You're wasting your money - Mother Nature is going to take your property no matter what…

"When I was a kid I lived in Holland for five years and saw first hand how the Dutch learned to deal with the ocean. A significant percentage of their country is actually below sea level, and the surf and storms coming in from the North Sea are every bit as rough as what you find hitting our island. I have no doubt that the erosion issues facing Nantucket can be addressed from an engineering perspective. In my mind, it's more a question of when the broader community will recognize the magnitude of the problem and get the resolve required to address it, and when the Town will support the permitting of erosion protection like many other states and countries already do today.

Why isn't moving your house or the houses of those on the ocean side of the Bluff to a new lot inland an option?

"Some houses have already been moved, and I assume that others will be in the future. But it's important to understand that we're not talking about one or two or even five houses here. There are roughly 70 houses along the bluff and on the front line in Codfish Park, and at least another 80 across the street. Some are in immediate danger, and many will likely be at risk in the not too distant future if erosion is allowed to continue unchecked. If these houses are destroyed, the roads will also soon become unusable and will need to be replaced. Losses on this magnitude would forever change the nature of the village and the island. It's also worth noting that this would end up costing the Town tens of millions of dollars between lost tax revenues, appropriating lands and building new roads, not to mention the considerable litigation that would likely occur."

The Patriot's Day storm this year proved fairly convincingly that terracing of the bluff is no match for wind and waves. Is it prudent to stop using this form of bluff stabilization or keep going with it and why?

"The terracing is actually designed to slowly give way in a major storm while protecting the bluff and preventing further damage. However, our primary objective is to protect the dunes and bluff from getting hit by the surf in the first place. Over the past 10 years SBPF tried to accomplish this through the installation of beach de-watering systems but this met with limited success. What we're proposing now is to make the beaches wider and deeper through 'nourishment,' or collecting sand off-shore and pumping it along the coastline. This process is used successfully in many states today from Florida to New Jersey."

When the terracing components get washed down the bluff, the waves scatter the timbers and jute fiber matting to beaches north of you and pretty much everywhere around the island. What do you have to say to the people who own those beaches?

"Again, if we're successful in getting an erosion control system in place, this shouldn't be a problem. In the meantime, this is obviously not a great situation and we've been working diligently to clean up any debris that washed away. We're also looking at new ways to construct terracing that prevents it from being scattered if hit by a storm. We're really trying to be good neighbors - it doesn't help us or anyone else when this type of damage occurs."

Much of the opposition to thisproject is coming from charter and commercial fishermen concerned about losing their livelihood and from wildlife advocates who, along with the fishermen, are worried about how the dredging of sand from the shoal, construction of the new beach and long shore drift of the sand over time will impact shorebirds and their food - what do you say to these people?

"I think they're absolutely right to be asking questions - I've been asking them too. Remember that SBPF is largely comprised of individuals who have been here for generations, and none of us want to do anything that causes damage to the island that we care so deeply about. We've been meeting with the local fishing community over the past year to review the research on beach nourishment based on successful implementations at other locations across the country. Our hope is that once all the facts are on the table, we will jointly conclude that this is a beneficial project that's worth doing."

If the beach nourishment project works, which parts of the island should it be applied to next?

"Bottom line is that our goal is to find an erosion control solution that can be deployed as needed around the island. We believe that beach nourishment is the best answer at this time given our sensitivity to the environment and the realities of permitting restrictions today. People often ask "why don't you just put in a sea wall like they've done all along the coast (recent example on Long Island to save Montauk Lighthouse) and just take care of the problem once and for all?" Well, someday I think it may come to that if we really want to save this island, but at this point the town and the State do not allow sea walls to be built. The reality is that the ice caps are melting, the water levels and temperatures are rising and the number of storms increasing. This obviously does not bode well for our island or other coastal communities, and I think the rules are going to have to start changing."

Is there anything you want to say that I haven't talked about today, anything else on your mind that concerns SBPF and its efforts?

"My sense is that it may take a disastersuch as a major storm that claims many public and private properties for the island to get serious about addressing this threat. (Imagine waves from Nobadeer crashing over the end of the runway.) Why should we treat our island's losses to erosion as inevitable when communities around the world have successfully proven that it's possible to save the lands that are important to them? Doing nothing is not a viable option in the long run, and moving a house here or there is not going to solve the problem. When you read the papers these days you see articles about erosion everywhere from Chatham and Winthrop, to Florida, California, and around the world. We need to treat this growing threat seriously as a community, and start working together to find the best

solutions for protecting our island." I

- The views expressed in this series are solely those of the members of the Siasconset Beach Preservation Fund and do not necessarily represent the position of The Nantucket Independent. Email your comments and letters to the editor to: don@nantucketindependent.com.