Dec 17, 2008 10:50 pm US/Eastern
Coast Towns Get 'Smart' About Living On Edge
SCITUATE (WBZ) ―
Although the winter storm slated for Friday has big snow potential, it could also take a bite out of our coast.
Coastal flooding and beach erosion are a real threat along our shoreline, especially given projections of rising seas and more frequent storms due to climate change.
Still, we all seem to love the ocean and those fortunate enough to live in a coastal community often think the benefits outweigh the risks. That is until your home is claimed by beach erosion -- a sad truth we all saw play out on
Plum Island only a few weeks ago.
In Scituate, which leads the state in repetitive property damage, many have opted to raise their homes by several feet to escape flood waters.
Elevating a residence by as little as three feet can equate to $100,000 in insurance savings over the life of a 30 year mortage. Although homeowners pay tens of thousands out of pocket for the work, federal funds do help --covering 75 percent of the cost up to $40,000 per home...and that comes straight from the taxpayer.
We asked Massachusetts residents in our exclusive FastTrack if government money should be used this way -- 59 percent thought it was a waste.
All development along the coast is determined town by town, the state has no say. So to help communities better manage and plan for the risk of living in the coastal danger zone, the state recently launched
StormSmart Coasts. This online resource helps coastal towns cut through the red tape and get smart about living on the edge.
Although the scenes of coastal destruction often look like a battle between man and nature, the reality is that we are the ones getting in the way of natural processes.
Nature always has the upper hand. We can only attempt to adapt to the threat.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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