Jersey Shore Magazine

Easement Issues Some authorized beach restoration projects have been delayed due to legal disputes with homeowners who have riparian easements. Dr. Herrington pointed out that easement issues are complex, and it is often difficult to determine who is the ultimate owner due to the property being part of a will, a foundation, or a corporation. In other cases, the new high dunes will block the homeowner's ocean view. Many of the owners feel this reduces the value of their properties and want to be compensated. The New Jersey Supreme Court recently reversed a compensation decision, dramatically reducing U.S. Army Corps of Engineers forever change our beaches but our view of the ocean as well. On the boardwalks, with the twenty-two foot high dune, you may no longer be able to see the waves breaking along the sand; if you own oceanfront property, depending on how high your home stands (or how high you are forced by the government to raise your home), you may no longer have an ocean view, which is one of the primary reasons people own oceanfront properties. The Corps plans to re-nourish these beaches on a four-year cycle. Hopper dredges off Long Beach Island. an award to one such homeowner, in effect saying that the collective safety and protection of the community was also a benefit to the landowner and that instead the dunes added value to the home because they give protection from storms. Although the case was sent back to a lower court in Ocean County for a new trial, it is expected to be settled, and this decision will most likely move easementrelated issues forward. Effects Of Changing Weather Patterns According to the U.S. Global Change Research Program, estimates suggest a sea-level rise between three and four feet over the next eighty-five years. Even a two-foot rise in sea level would result in the loss of a large portion of the nation's remaining coastal wetlands. Since 1970, the average annual continued on page 64 j e r s e y s h o r e • 2 0 1 3 This illustration shows the type of berm-and-dune system proven to be effective against storm surges and high tides. Use of dune crossovers (instead of openings in the dunes) with longer berms is critical in helping to prevent surges from gnawing away at the sand and causing full breaches. continued on page 40 F a l l / h o l i d a y illustration by Stephen Fowler 63

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