California's iconic beaches could nearly disappear within the next 75 years, according to the Surfrider Foundation's State of the Beach report.
The new findings warn that sea-level rise, driven by warming temperatures, threatens to erase more than half of the nation's sandy coastlines, altering California's landscape in particular.
What's happening?
While erosion is a natural process, this report emphasized that human-driven planetary warming is drastically intensifying its pace.
Rising temperatures are "ramping up the severity, intensity, and compounding impacts of many of these drivers along our coasts," it stated.
"Sea levels are rising more quickly, extreme weather events are becoming more frequent, and our beaches are disappearing faster than ever before."
Part of the problem is also coastal development, which is only increasing as more and more people relocate to coastal areas. "Rampant private development in idyllic coastal areas continues," the report said, "encroaching on eroding beaches and contributing to what is known as 'coastal squeeze.'"
Why is coastal erosion concerning?
When the coastline shrinks, people, property, and even entire cities lose their buffer against the ocean.
This kind of extreme erosion causes ecosystems to collapse.
Dunes that provide nesting grounds for endangered species vanish, kelp forests and tide pools lose protection from sediment runoff, and salt marshes that filter water and absorb carbon are damaged.
Beyond biodiversity, eroded coastlines leave human infrastructure dangerously exposed to sea-level rise and its devastating consequences.
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Definitely 👍 What can be done about coastal erosion?
"California's beaches, and their immense cultural, economic, recreational and social value, are at risk of being permanently lost in the coming decades," said Emma Hayodocy, an author of the report, per KUSI.
"At a time when federal leadership has pivoted away from climate resilience, urgent action is needed by local communities to protect these vital resources."
The report concluded with five tangible actions people can take to help.
These include attending city council meetings, contacting local representatives, and, first and foremost, spending time at local beaches to document change and understand the beauty and importance of what's at stake.
"Attend or lead a local restoration event at your favorite beach through Surfrider Foundation's Climate Action Program," the report encouraged.
"You can help remove invasive species that make dunes less resilient and restore the native plant species that help make coastal areas more resilient against flooding and rising seas."
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