Beaches in Florida’s Miami-Dade and Broward counties are running out of sand. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are trying to figure out where to get more sand to replenish the shorelines as fast as possible to prevent erosion caused by future hurricanes.

The title of this article is “Florida Beaches Are Running Out of Sand” and I came across this article on the Discovery News website.

This article is about how a few Florida beaches are running out of sand and how the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is trying to figure out where to get more. According to the Associated Press, the Army Corps is holding meeting on the subject. Because we have dammed up rivers and built up harbors there’s less sediment replenishing the shore these days. The AP also states that there is enough sand off southeastern Florida shorelines to replenish five counties for over 50 years. Beach nourishment can be expensive so the federal government and local entities split the bill for the first 50 years of nourishment and after that the federal funding will stop. The Senate recently passed a bill that will last for 15 years and the White House will take up its version of the bill next month.

I feel that this is a situation that should not be taken lightly. If this issue is not handled quickly enough, the beaches shorelines will not be protected from erosion caused by future hurricanes. I believe the Army Corps is doing everything in their power to replenish and nourish the beaches and hopefully they will be able to figure out how to keep this from happening anywhere else.

This shortage of sand in Florida affects the world by changing a few of America’s most famous beaches. It causes change by making it known to humans that we can either help or hurt our environment with great impact. Due to structures and other manmade things, humans are the greatest shapers of landscapes because we move much more Earth than wind or water. This event reminds us that we have more power than we realize when it comes Earth’s nature and we need to be more careful with what we build in our environment.

Link to website: http://news.discovery.com/earth/oceans/florida-beaches-are-running-out-of-sand-130816.htm