Nothing is softer or more flexible than water, yet nothing can resist it.
-- Lao Tsu
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| Wave crashes against rock cliff on West Cliff Drive |
On Thursday throngs of lookie-loos flocked to Santa Cruz to see the big waves. Some even jumped into the water believing they could surf the monster waves, part of a winter swell that arrived following an extreme -- or king -- tide when the coastal surf recedes and rises as much as 6-ft. That's 12-ft all told. Add big waves that bring enough water to cover a 75-ft beach and you get the picture.
The forecast of these conditions came with a warning to stay out of the water and be cautious of getting too close. The forecast worked as an advertisement, a promotion, for many to come find out how close they could get.
Humans.
We can't help ourselves.
There were the usual sirens and rescues. No drownings. Many got soaked by crashing waves that spilled onto roads and walkways.
So it goes. Today another major swell from the Pacific Ocean is pounding our coastline.
This could be the new normal, according to marine scientists. Our oceans are rising and getting warmer as Arctic glaciers melt and the ocean absorbs more carbon dioxide, created by burning of fossil fuels.
"Sea level rise is the heart of climate change," according to Mark Merrifield, who heads the Scripps Center for Climate Change Impacts and Adaptations.
Facts like these run through Rosanna Xia's recently published book, California Against the Sea, Visions for our vanishing coastline. Xia is an award-winning environmental reporter for the LA Times. Her well researched and beautifully written work goes into detail about several coastal communities and wetlands throughout California that currently face critical decisions regarding the issues of coastal protection, private property rights and public access to beaches.
Xia (pronounced sheeyah) stopped by Bookshop Santa Cruz recently where she read passages from her acclaimed book. She was accompanied by Gary Griggs, coastal geologist and professor at UC Santa Cruz, and Charles Lester, former head of the California Coastal Commission. We meet both men in the pages of Xia's reporting.
The poignancy of her book is easily acknowledged on days like I describe above. Man has been building seawalls since the ancient Egyptians. These man-made barriers invariably succumb to Mother Ocean. What is happening up and down the coast of California is also taking place around the world, including Venice, Italy.
"The oceans have absorbed the heat equivalent to seven Hiroshima atomic bombs detonating each second, twenty-four hours a day, three hundred sixty-five days a year," according to one thermal scientist.
Xia's investigations are about how communities on the California coast are dealing with sea-level rise, from Imperial Beach south of San Diego, to Laguna Beach, San Simeon, Santa Cruz, Pacifica and San Francisco. What to do? Fight or flight? It's a mixed bag, especially when dealing with wealthy property owners whose precious investments, second-homes are at risk.
What is government's responsibility? Who bears the enormous financial burden? Especially when over (undetermined) time, Lao Tsu's prophetic words will become reality. These issues and battles and the people involved make Xia's story more compelling and relatable.
Humans have historically wanted to live by water and the ocean. Native people, such as the Chumash who inhabited coastal areas near Santa Barbara, for thousands of years lived in harmony with the coast and wetlands, eventually migrating from a sinking island (Channel Island) to settle on the mainland. They never built seawalls and understood and respected the coastal eco systems.
When the Spaniards arrived in the 18th Century, they had different ideas. They viewed the natives as uncivilized. With the arrival of the railroad and industry, train tracks and concrete spread to the beaches. During this period of climate calmness -- the Pacific Decadal Oscillation -- generous winds pulled the warmer water offshore. "Sea level suppression" lasted about a century.
Developers sprang at the untouched opportunity, paving over sand dunes, wetlands and even rivers to build as close to the water as possible, and extract the highest prices for said locations. "Seaside cottages morphed into glass mansions. Californians, captivated by this unconquered coast, kept building right to the water's edge," writes Xia.
It's safe to say that Pacific Decadal Oscillation has ended. El Ninos (warm ocean currents) are happening more often and typically bring stormy rainy conditions. The weather is as fickle as we humans. I have a strong feeling that we are closely related. It's our atmosphere, after all. Time is all we got, and many beaches flowing south.
And a rising burning ocean as a new seaside attraction!
Happy New Year!
On a related note, Santa Cruz friend Dan Haifley explains the latest progress of a new marine sanctuary on the California coast, and how, if you're a state resident, a simple letter to California's two U.S. Senators can help push things forward. See story below.
Thank you, Kevin, for this informative piece and informing us of Xia’s book. Nancy
ReplyDeleteGreat article. I want to read the book!
ReplyDelete