So Far, Senator Coburn A No-Show for Coastal Debate
With 100 coastal advocates coming into Washington, DC next week, the American Shore & Beach Preservation Association has chided Senator Tom Coburn for failing to accept its invitation to speak at the group’s Annual Coastal Summit. The Oklahoma Republican has been an outspoken critic of coastal restoration projects, saying he doesn’t want taxpayer money spent to help children bukild sandcastle. “We find it puzzling that Senator Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) has chosen not to accept our invitation to be a featured speaker at the annual Coastal Summit in Washington, D.C. next month.
Considering that the Senator had his staff devote enough time to come up with “Washed Out to Sea: How Congress Prioritizes Beach Pork over National Needs” (a 43-page document that parades as a Congressional Oversight & Investigations Report), we thought that he would have jumped at the chance to join us in March. Our invitation to the Senator and his staff, however, has fallen on deaf ears.” You can read ASBPA’s entire message by clicking here...
Survey Shows Beaches Need $450 in FY 2011
ASBPA Survey
February 23, 2010
A recent survey conducted by the American Shore and Beach Preservation Association shows that $450 million in federal funding is needed in Fiscal Year 2011 to meet beach funding requirements. Click here to view the full survey...
An Effort to Spread Green Power to Coasts
By Matthew Wald
The New York Times
December 7, 2009
For 40 years, the North American electric system has operated as three loosely linked grids, but a new transmission company is aiming to unite them. That union, if consummated, could have strong implications for renewable energy.
The company, Tres Amigas, proposes a huge power hub near Clovis, N.M., covering more than 20 square miles. It would be remote from populated areas but near the fulcrum of the continent’s wind and solar resources. Tres Amigas plans to make regulatory filings on Tuesday in pursuit of its goal.
The project could, backers say, transform a region that is a sparse frontier for transmission lines into a robust intersection that would allow immense transfers of power across the country. The direction of flow would depend on where the wind was blowing, the sun was shining and the temperatures were creating extra electricaldemand.
M&Co. Report: Summary of Congressional Hazards Caucus Briefing
By Toby Hicks, Legislative Intern
Marlowe & Company
November 19, 2009
Three speakers representing the University of Rhode Island, the United States Geological Survey, and the Environmental Protection Agency reviewed current issues of eroding coastlines and the geological and societal impacts of extreme storms, wetland loss, and sea level rise.
M&Co. Report: Proposed USGS Plan for a National Coastal Program
By Toby Hicks, Legislative Intern
Marlowe & Company Report
November 17, 2009
As population growth expands along U.S. coasts, coastal ecosystems are impacted by urban, industrial, and agricultural development. The U.S.’s coastal region, while only 17% of the area of the contiguous states, includes more than 53% of our population. Between 2009 and 2015 the population in this region will grow by 27 million people and attract 180 visitors annually. But issues that affect the coast – such as shoreline erosion, chemical contamination, algal blooms, habitat loss, and resource exploitation – threaten to diminish the health and economic utility of the coast. North Carolina for example has already lost 34% of its costal wetlands including habitats critical to a fishery industry which contributes more than $1 billion annually to the state’s economy.
