Check out this beach nourishment for an example of all of the arguments that don't make sense(Leaders urge Obama ...):
Some cities want bridges and schools from the federal stimulus plan.
Virginia Beach wants all of that and sand, too.
Beach officials are concerned the Obama administration will disqualify sand replenishment projects from receiving stimulus cash and have launched a pre-emptive lobbying effort.
Mayor Will Sessoms sent a letter to members of the city's congressional delegation asking that Virginia Beach get $10 million to replace sand at the Oceanfront.
The city needs the sand as protection against hurricanes and to lure tourists ...
"Luring" tourists points out the robbing Peter to pay Paul sort of policy that is beach nourishment. If tourists go to Virginia Beach they don't go somewhere else, negating the national benefits of the policy. Therefore, beach nourishment should not be a federally funded program.
... said Phillip Roehrs, the city's water resources engineer.
Operation Big Beach, the city's and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' last major beach replenishment effort, ended in 2002. Since then, parts of the Oceanfront have eroded by 70 feet to about 200 feet wide, Roehrs said.
Beach nourishment is a very temporary solution.
The dust-up over this stimulus money is part of a long-standing debate about whether the federal government should pay for any beach replenishment efforts. Both the Clinton and Bush administrations didn't think so and argued it was a local expense.
"The question is who should pay for it," said James V. Koch, an economist and former Old Dominion University president.
A big beach helps Virginia Beach bring in more tourists and prevents flooding, Koch said, but should Midwest taxpayers pay for the sand?
Answer: No (see above).
Virginia Beach's sand replenishment project will directly employ about 60 people, including crews of dredge workers and surveyors, Roehrs said. The city also plans to contribute $5 million to the cost, he said.
At the $10 ($15) million cost, 60 jobs will cost $167 (250) thousand each. Wouldn't it be cheaper to provide temporary employment benefits (at full salary even) until these workers find jobs?
A benefit-cost analysis of beach nourishment should include the values to tourists and property owners relative to other options (e.g., retreat, praying for miracles).
