| MAKING WAVES, June 2003 issue: Table of Contents |
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| THE
STATE OF YOUR BEACH |
Go to Surfrider's Gift Membership Signup web page to enroll a beach or coastal enthusiast who is not yet a member. |
If you're reading this, I know something about you… I know you love the beach. The old notion that we protect that which we know and love, almost certainly applies to most beach and ocean enthusiasts.  Whether
you swim, surf, sail, fish, play volleyball or simply enjoy the occasional walk up
the beach at sunset, chances are you possess a profound attachment to the collective
experience that comprises our oceans, waves and beaches. I hope that through your
membership in the Surfrider Foundation you know even more about the coast and that
this only fuels your passion to protect it. Imagine going to your local beach tomorrow and discovering that you were no longer welcome. Picture cruising up to your favorite surf spot, only to find that it has been posted as private property and is now off limits. Seems hard to imagine, doesn't it? However, as you read this, this very thing is happening somewhere along our country's coasts. "Public beach access is in jeopardy." That is but one of the conclusions in the Surfrider Foundation's 2003 State of the Beach report. This year's report spotlights individual case studies from Galveston, Texas, Ponte Vedra, Florida, Rockaway Beach in New York, and Latigo Canyon near Malibu, California, which serve to illustrate "nice beaches that you may not be able to get to." But even getting to the coast isn't worth much if your journey ends at an armored, eroded, dirty and unsafe shore. This year's State of the Beach report also contains a state by state review of our nation's coastlines, including qualitative assessments of beach access, water quality, beach erosion, shoreline structures and availability of coastal zone information. Now in its fourth year of publication, Surfrider Foundation's State of the Beach report has become a baseline indicator of coastal health. Not all the news is bad. This issue of Making Waves also features recent key victories for our coasts, including our San Diego Chapter's victory in stopping the construction of harmful seawalls at Solana Beach and our Delaware Chapter's crucial work to create recreational areas along Rehoboth Beach. The condition of our beaches could be elegantly affected by any one of a number of simple acts by you. Here's one—use the membership envelope at the center of this newsletter to enroll a beach or coastal enthusiast who is not yet a member. That simple, yet critical act concretely assures the sustainability of this worthy cause and adds yet another level of protection to something you truly love. For the oceans, waves and beaches,  Christopher J. Evans, Esq. Executive Director * * *
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