By Bob Plain in
Rhode Island’s Future
“Our
beaches will be the bellwether of climate change,” said Judith Swift, executive
director of URI’s Coastal Institute. “Not only will we lose beaches due to sea
level rise, but increased precipitation will add additional pollutants to our
beaches from stormwater runoff.”
“Beach
closures,” according to the press release, “are very much dependent upon
rainfall, as stormwater flushes out pollutants and bacteria that close both
beaches and shellfishing areas.”
The
report explains: “Annual average precipitation … has been increasing over the
last century and this trend is projected to continue. When you look at the
pattern of rainfall, something else becomes apparent: the frequency of intense
rainfall events has also increased. When we get large amounts of precipitation
in a short amount of time, the stormwater runoff can overwhelm our treatment
facilities and result in sewage being flushed into the Narragansett Bay.”
There
were 41 beach closures last summer. This summer there are currently five
closures – at First Beach in Middletown, the Bristol and Warren town beaches
and two beaches in Tiverton. This rain event will surely lead to even more this
week. (RI Future reported on the scientific causes of beach closures, their economic effects and how RI monitors the water last summer).
But
the good news is while we had heavy rains last summer, we experienced fewer
beach closings than previous summers. There were 86 beach closures in 2009, 55
in 2010 and 45 in 2011. The Watershed Counts report says the counter-intuitive
decrease in closures can be attributed because of public investments to control
stormwater runoff, sewer overflow.
“Using
green infrastructure and other best management practices to protect beach water
quality is paying off,” said Department of Environmental Management Director
Janet Coit. “DEM welcomes the opportunity to partner with cities and towns to
enhance what is a time-honored Rhode Island tradition – enjoying a glorious day
at the beach.”
A
clean water/open space bond on the November ballot, if approved by voters,
would invest $20 million to further clean water and segregate sewage and
stormwater overflow, according to the report, but that’s only a fraction of the
need. “Municipalities and the Narragansett Bay Commission have identified more
than $1.8 billion dollars of needed clean water in frastructure improvements
ranging from wastewater treatment upgrades and storm water quality improvements
to combined sewer overflow abatement projects,” according to DEM in the report.
“The
opportunity to promote and invest in a beautiful Rhode Island is significant,
and the need for that investment is immediate,” according to a DEM statement in
the report. “Rhode Island’s greatest natural resource and a key driver to
economic growth—Narragansett Bay—is threatened by polluted run-off and the
damaging effects of climate change. Conversely, local food markets are booming,
horticultural, and agricultural and landscape companies are doing more local
business than ever, and our $2.26 billion dollar tourism sector is growing.”
According
to the press release, there has been a “surprising” lack of support from the
state to monitor water quality at local beaches.
“The
funding for marine beach monitoring comes mostly from federal sources. The
National Beach Program provided over $200,000 to both Rhode Island and
Massachusetts in 2013,” it reads. “The state budgets contained no funding,
despite the fact that beaches are an economic driver, and that the federal
monitoring program for saltwater beaches has recently been at issue for
possible elimination in federal budget talks.”
Bob Plain is the editor/publisher of Rhode
Island's Future. Previously, he's worked as a reporter for several different
news organizations both in Rhode Island and across the country.