Protecting Hawaii’s coasts requires difficult decisions

A couple of weeks after a sand-replenishment project in Waikiki was completed to the cheers of tan fans, tourists, hoteliers and shore-based businesses came a federal assessment that 70 percent of beaches on three of Hawaii’s major islands are slowly but surely eroding.

Though providing numbers, the study by the U.S. Geological Survey didn’t report something new. Coastal erosion has been evident, clear in constant attempts to keep the ocean at bay, in lawmaking and legal conflicts over receding real estate, even in quarrels pitting public access against commercial capitalization.

The goal of the report with the unwieldy title “National Assessment of Shoreline Change: Historical Shoreline Change in the Hawaiian Islands” is to establish a consistent system of methods and baseline measurements for future analysis. From information gathered about changes and reasons for them, government agencies and policy-makers can figure out how to deal with them in an effectual and sensible manner.

That’s the hope, anyway.

State and county governments have made moves to stem effects of beach erosion, for example, requiring beachfront homeowners to remove sandbags and illegal walls put up in fruitless ventures to protect their holdings and adopting deeper setbacks for beachside construction as Kauai has.

At the same time, other government entities have made short-run decisions, such as when the city Department of Planning and Permitting granted approval for a variance to a 100-foot shoreline setback requirement for a condominium and hotel tower and a swimming pool in Waikiki. The variance is supposedly mitigation for an unfulfilled state promise made nearly 50 years ago to widen the beach by 180 feet.

Few other natural features identify Hawaii as much as its beaches. They are the strongest draw for the tourism industry, offering the image of leisure and recreation in a tropical paradise.

Yet imprudent man-made efforts to stem erosion have not held back natural forces and government leaders have not had the will to make difficult decisions needed to protect the shoreline and nearby communities.

Beachside properties are the most valued not only in Hawaii but across the country, and development along coasts brings in hard revenue. But building close to the water makes no sense in the long run, as seen when storms and hurricanes devastate shorelines and as ocean levels continue to rise. It makes no sense for structures to crowd the coast to the detriment of the environment. It makes no sense to shift tons of sand to rebuild beaches that in a few years will need more sand shifted.

The study does not advocate relocation of development inland or requiring wider setbacks. Its purpose is to provide information. Changing current practices will be up to Hawaii’s leaders.

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Cynthia Oi can be reached at coi@staradvertiser.com.