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Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
Karla
Gutierrez
English
301
Dr.
Bruce
December
10,
2015
[APA
format]
Homeowners are not particularly the ones to blame for the damaging of
coastal
environments.
Studies
have
shown
that
people
have
difficulty
believing
cause
and
effect
relationships,
similar
to
these,
if
they
are
not
directly
seen
(Thompson,
2007).
Robert
Thompson,
a
professor
of
Marine
Affairs
at
the
University
of
Rhode
Island,
states
that
from
the
existing
cultural
models
used
to
manage
shoreline
properties,
the
ecological
model
is
the
least
understood.
In
other
words,
if
homeowners
do
not
see
the
direct
effect
that
their
houses
have
on
coastal
environments,
they
are
likely
to
ignore
the
significance
of
maintaining
the
surrounding
habitat.
Putting
this
into
perspective,
not
unlike
people
raking
fallen
leaves
in
their
front
yards,
beach
homeowners
also
try
to
maintain
their
property
free
of
drifting
seaweed.
The
removal
of
seaweed
and
other
organic
elements
can
reduce
beach
diversity
by
eliminating
potential
food
sources
and
seabird
nesting
materials
(Thompson,
2007).
Threats
to
Coastal
Zones
quite
devastating
in
coastal
zones.
Some
people
may
not
realize
that
global
warming
could
be
a
potential
risk
factor
for
coastal
cities.
Changes
in
temperature
are
not
the
only
side
effect
according
to
this
hypothesis.
Scientists
have
collected
substantial
data
suggesting
that
sea
levels
have
risen
significantly
in
the
past
century
(Church
and
White,
2006).
Further
research
has
demonstrated
that
sea
levels
have
fluctuated
through
millennia
(Kemp
et
al,
2011).
This
variation
can
be
misleading
since
changes
in
our
oceans
appear
to
be
haphazard.
However,
what
is
most
alarming
are
the
reported
increasing
rates
of
sea
level
rise
since
the
mid
20th
century.
The
slope
of
average
global
sea
level
change
has
increased
from
0.71
to
1.84
mm
per
year
(Church
and
White,
2006).
A
Science
magazine
article
declares
that
predicted
effects
include
submergence
of
shorelines
and
more
intense
flood
events
(Nicholls
and
Cazenave,
2010).
the
2005
Hurricane
Katrina
in
the
Golf
coast
and
2012
Hurricane
Sandy
in
the
Atlantic
coast,
two
of
the
most
expensive
hurricanes
in
the
history
of
the
United
States$108
and
$50
billion
dollars
respectively
(Leins,
2014).
Not
only
are
structures
damaged
but
lives
are
also
destroyed,
and
this,
in
the
end,
is
what
matters
the
most.
The
reason
why
people
continue
to
be
in
harms
way
is
because
development
along
the
waters
edge
has
not
stopped
and
reconstruction
in
high-risk
zones
ultimately
leads
to
similar
ends
(Walsh,
2012).
Is
it
worth
rebuilding
structures
along
the
shoreline
in
zones
prone
to
weather
catastrophes?
According
to
a
report
on
The
Data
Center,
about
80%
of
New
Orleans
was
flooded
due
to
Hurricane
Katrina
(Plyer,
2015).
Most
of
this
damage
affected
local
neighborhoods
displacing
over
one
million
residents
from
their
homes;
this
amounted
to
over
one
hundred
thousand
households.
The
initial
reconstruction
plans
involved
the
solidification
of
the
failed
levee
system-
man
made
structures,
such
as
embankments,
with
the
purpose
to
prevent
overflow
(Kates
et
al,
2006).
Even
with
this
construction,
according
to
Kates
et
al,
the
city
is
expected
to
experience
flooding
again
in
the
face
of
future
hurricanes
that
may
intensify
with
the
effect
of
global
warming.
Alleviating
Coastal
Damages
counterbalance
the
effects
of
high
water
levels
(Manis
et
al,
2015).
These
structures
are
composed
of
hard
materials,
organisms,
and
plants
that
mimic
natural
obstruction
of
wave
forces.
The
experimental
results
suggest
that
shorelines
consisting
of
oysters
and
macroalgae
have
a
positive
impact
on
the
surrounding
ecosystem
serving
as
potential
habitat.
This
method
can
be
quite
inexpensive
in
comparison
to
heavy
infrastructures.
Nevertheless,
living
shorelines
are
most
useful
Calling
for
an
absolute
stop
of
construction
near
coasts
would
certainly
be
heavily
debated.
Coastal-based
business
owners,
especially,
would
strongly
argue
against
this.
Moreover,
tourism
would
also
be
heavily
affected
from
such
an
action
if
shops
and
resorts
were
eliminated
from
these
popular
areas.
Since
many
people
depend
on
the
seashore
for
income,
an
abrupt
change
to
coastal
expansion
could
harm
the
financial
state
of
many
shoreline
counties.
For
this
reason,
efforts
to
raise
awareness
about
the
consequences
of
living
near
shores
should
be
directed
towards
homeowners
whose
well
being
is
more
important
than
goods.
Moreover,
coastal
cities
should
set
out
plans
to
diminish
the
expansion
of
construction,
for
homes
at
the
very
least,
in
areas
of
high-risk
and
reinforce
proper
management
and
flood
strategies.
Bibliography
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