Almost Three Years After Sandy, Jersey Shore Still Recovering

The New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium's annual State of the Shore Report came out recently. The report addresses the condition of New Jersey State beaches as they prepare to take on summer tourists. The report also deals with ongoing repercussions from Hurricane Sandy.
 
It's been two and a half years since Hurricane Sandy, but the Jersey Shore is still recovering. Stockton University's Coastal Research Center says that 14 million cubic yards of sand were swept away by the Hurricane. In the time since the initial aftermath, Mother nature and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have restored 80% of the lost sand. 
 
Municipal, state, and federal governments have undertaken massive efforts to build dunes and replenish beaches to minimize the effects of future storms like Hurricane Sandy. Stockton University's Daniel Barone stresses the importance of dunes as the last line of defense between beachfront communities and devastating waves.
Dunes also play a large part in maintaining an ecologically healthy shoreline that is able to resist erosion.
 
"Dunes are extremely important, not only environmentally, but for shore protection. They provide that last line of defense for stopping waves crossing over land into developed areas--flooding developed areas," says Barone.
 
Barone explains that the role of dunes is sacrificial, since large storms produce powerful waves that pull dunes back into the ocean. However, by acting as stockpiles of sand, dunes preserve the shoreline during major storms. After storms like Sandy, Barone says the shoreline becomes especially vulnerable due to the absence of dunes--which take decades to accumulate naturally. This is why dunes must be constructed artifically, to account for the possibility of another devastating storm.
 
The good news is, researchers at Stockton University's Coastal Research Center are expecting a below average hurricane season this summer. 
 
"It's projected right now to be a pretty calm summer in terms of storm activity, so a lot of the sand that has been transported offshore from those mild winter storms we had should be making its way back onto the beaches," researcher Daniel Barone predicts.
 
The State of the Shore report forecasts an excellent beach season with good water quality and little storm activity.
 

Weekdays at Noon

Ticket Giveaways from WFUV