Sand: Coast's most valuable resource:
Is there enough sand out there to nourish potentially more than 100 miles of beachfront as almost every town along the coast looks for help to protect its valuable oceanfront property from the encroaching Atlantic?
"Clearly there are parts of North Carolina coast where there's less sand available than other parts, which could make some nourishment projects challenging," said Harry Simmons, executive director of the N.C. Beach, Inlet and Waterway Association. "But that also means we simply have to look harder to take care of those projects."
Without technological improvement, "look harder" means increasing costs. The Federal government and beach towns already don't want to bear the burden of the costs of beach nourishment. My advice? Don't build/buy a beachfront "cottage" in North Carolina.
