The Next SPUR Public Workshop

Coastal Access at Sloat

Greetings Surfriders and Friends,

The SPUR website has just posted public comments from SPUR's public workshop number two, the Alternatives Phase. See http://www.spur.org/ocean-beach If you read the comment summary sections, it should become crystal clear why it is so important that people from our community show up, fully informed and ready to participate at these meetings. Again, the next and final SPUR public workshop is Saturday October 29th at the Golden Gate Park Senior Center 6101 Fulton St @ 37th Ave 10am-12:30pm. Please mark the SPUR workshop date on your calendars!

In addition, SF Baykeeper is currently featuring an informative article about sea level rise and Managed Retreat on their website. The piece mentions our plight at Sloat with a quality link to a historical background of the issue. See: http://baykeeper.org/blog/bcdc-approves-amendment-bay-plan-addressing-sea-level-rise
Finally, the Rip Curl Pro WCT contest is coming right on the heels of the last SPUR workshop. Surfrider National and the local chapter will be co-sponsoring the opening party on Tuesday November 1 at the Mezzanine. The theme of the party will be raising awareness of the Sloat issue. See more info: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=258782484157893

Next SPUR Public Workshop October 29th

Greetings Surfriders and Friends,

The next SPUR public workshop has been announced for Saturday October 29th at the Golden Gate Park Senior Center 6101 Fulton St. @ 37th Ave 10am-12pm. This meeting will cover the initial Draft Ocean Beach Master Plan. Please mark your calendars and spread the word. It is absolutely critical that we get the Master Plan on track now to feature a robust restoration plan for the south Sloat area.

In other news, local surfer and coastal attorney Mark Massara has recently filed a lawsuit against the City and County of San Francisco for violating permits issued by the California Coastal Commission. The suit, filed with The California Coastal Protection Network, claims the City's rock revetments at Sloat are out of compliance on multiple items found in Commission permits. This is a significant development that will will be sure to cover as things unfold...
See: http://oceanbeachbulletin.com/2011/08/26/environmental-group-sues-san-francisco-over-ocean-beach-rock-piles/

Last, but not least, an economic study of the future effects of sea level rise for Ocean Beach has just been released by Phillip King of San Francisco State University. Mr. King is also a member of SPUR's Ocean Beach Master Plan Steering Committee, so this information will inform the Master Plan.
http://blogs.kqed.org/climatewatch/2011/09/13/the-price-of-rising-seas/

In his report, King models the economic effects of a sea level rise of 1.4 meters by 2100 (the current projection). His findings show SF and its residents would sustain more than $500 million in damage to infrastructure and private property - if no proactive measures are taken. This is exactly why we have been calling for a Managed Retreat strategy for Ocean Beach. The only way to responsibly deal with an encroaching high tide line is to move back and to give the ocean its space. This is true even if economics are the chief driver. The alternative strategy of armoring is messy, expensive in its own right, and destructive to our precious coastline. See above for more photos of the unfortunate situation at Sharp Park.

Projected Sea Level Rise for Ocean Beach - Why Managed Retreat as a Long Term Strategy

The Future of Ocean Beach? The beach at Sharp Park (Pacifica) is disappearing under a pile of armor. Click photo to see close-up.


Dear Surfriders and Friends,

Many may be surprised to hear that there is a looming threat of beach loss at central Ocean Beach. Below are a few links to scientific reports that have informed this projection. They deal with sea level rise. According to the Pacific Institute report, sea levels off the CA coast have risen 8 inches over the last 100 years. By 2100, sea level rise is predicted to rise another 1.0-1.4 meters (4’-5’). Although sea level rise projections are estimates, the trend lines behind this projection are serious. We should prepare for significant impacts. Middle Ocean Beach has been eroding for some time. We should expect beach loss to continue. However, as compared to Sloat, there is a greater opportunity to slow it down with sand nourishment and strategic sand management practices. This should allow us to buy time for proper planning.

Surfrider believes the sooner we embrace a strategy of Managed Retreat, the better off we will all be – taxpayers, beach users, and ecology. An encroaching high tide line is part of a natural process. If our city chooses to hold fast to existing boundaries, we can expect to see results like we have in the photo above. This is a group of revetments recently placed on the beach at Sharp Park, in the neighboring town of Pacifica. It's not a pretty picture. They are wiping out their beach.

This ia a graphic derived from the statewide study showing the potential erosion by 2100 based on 4.6’ of sea level rise. http://www.pwa-ltd.com/about/about_news.html#OPC_Report

The report by PWA:
http://www.pwa-ltd.com/about/news-CoastalErosion/PWA_OPC_Methods_final.pdf

Here is a link to the Pacific Institute report that this work fed into:
http://www.pacinst.org/reports/sea_level_rise/

Here is the State Adaptation Strategy that was affected by this work:
http://www.climatechange.ca.gov/adaptation/