The ocean is coming for Assateague, OC. What to do?

Rising water sparks different reaction than rest of Delmarva coast.

THE DAILY TIMES EDITORIAL BOARD

This aerial view of the Assateague Island coastline reveals the difference made by allowing the southern portion to migrate while to the north, Ocean City beaches are constantly being replenished to prevent this natural land movement.

Assateague Island's state and national park areas are taking similar and proactive steps to survive a confluence of natural forces that threaten the existence of the island as we know it today.

Ocean City and Assateague were once a single barrier island protecting the Atlantic shore of the Delmarva Peninsula. Today they are separate, divided by an unnamed hurricane that struck in 1933 and created what we know today as the Ocean City Inlet.

An aerial view demonstrates the striking difference that weather event made. Once a single thin line of sand, the storm breached the island, creating two separate strips of land, which flank the inlet and no longer pretend to be lined up.

Assateague, in stark contract to Ocean City, has retreated in the face of wind, surf and rising ocean — not diminished significantly in width, but no longer resembling its former northern end.

Together, the two sides of that formerly single island serve as a visual reminder of how a barrier island serves as a buffer between the mainland and those forces of nature.

How did this come to be?

Ocean City has for decades engaged in beach replenishment, which periodically replaces beach sand that has washed into the ocean. This practice protects an immense long-term investment in the resort's real estate. But it's costly and in the end, it's a battle with nature that cannot be won.

Assateague, on the other hand, has been sculpted and over time, moved to a new location, bit by bit, sculpted and shaped by wind, waves and currents. Barrier islands thus act as buffers protecting the mainland.

Assateague is in a position to allow this to happen naturally because its existing infrastructure is relatively impermanent — a few buildings like offices, bathhouses, a concession stand or two, campsites and roadways. There is minimal electrical infrastructure as needed to operate offices and campgrounds.

And today, Assateague is taking a radically different approach to survival than its separated sister north of the inlet.

Instead of putting sand back on the ocean side so the beaches remain where they've been for decades, Assateague's parks are making plans to move some of its campground infrastructure, deferring to nature's whims and adapting to survive. It's a wise plan, one that is not feasible for Ocean City, but practical and laudable, if not a permanent fix.

But there is no forever solution to this problem for either island.

Ocean City and Assateague Island are unfortunately located at the confluence of two forces of nature that make the area uniquely vulnerable to destructive forces of nature.

Sea-level rise threatens all coastal land along the Atlantic coast of the United States. Delmarva's beaches and barrier islands are eroding as the ocean rises — 5 inches internationally since 1960. And increasingly severe storms like nor'easters, tropical storms and hurricanes scare up relentless waves that hammer the land.

Those things are happening up and down the coast to all oceanfront property.

But Delmarva faces a particular threat because of the lingering effect of geological forces: The land is actually sinking. This has been happening for millions of years, but it creates a heightened effect from the more recent phenomenon of sea-level rise.

This year, Assateague State Park is planning to eliminate altogether eight campsites and relocate 18 others inland, at the same time moving some roadways to accommodate the changes. This will preserve the 18 relocated sites, but it will also benefit the important dunes that protect the island during storms and high surf. Assateague Island National Seashore is planning similar measures.

The parks are at high risk for storm damage and sea-level rise, for reasons that are easy to understand once you see what they are up against.

For now, Ocean City is doing the best it can to protect its investment and preserve the popular beach resort, the only such resort in Maryland. And Assateague is being protected in an entirely different but appropriate manner.

The larger issue to consider in the face of this situation is that of the forces that have brought us to this point. Our entire peninsula is at risk of inundation by the ocean — not in hundreds of years as we once thought, but certainly unmistakable changes are possible within the lifetimes of our children and grandchildren.

The question of why it's happening is most relevant in the context of understanding what we must do to protect, preserve, adapt and survive. No one wants to leave a legacy that will disappear under the ocean during our most immediate descendants' lifetimes. It's beginning to happen now; we can see it happening.

What will we do with this knowledge?