By James Windell
Michigan can boast a unique distinction among all the states in U.S. We have 3,288 miles of freshwater shoreline. Van Buren County alone has nearly 14 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline.
While this is great for tourism, the amount of shoreline we have in Michigan and particularly in Van Buren County and the city of South Haven imposes significant responsibility on the government and residents to preserve as much of the shoreline as possible.
As scientists have pointed out, lakeside communities are subject to coastal erosion and the loss of sandy beaches. In fact, a 2018 study published in Nature stressed that information derived from satellite images shows that more than a quarter of sandy beaches all over the world are experiencing erosion surpassing 0.5 meters per year or more than one and a half feet. The same article noted that 16 % of beaches are eroding by as much as 1 meter, or more than three feet annually.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, erosion and flooding along Lake Michigan’s coastline have resulted in extensive damage to homes, recreational areas and industrial facilities. And the Department of Environment, Great Lakes & Energy, has found that approximately 250 miles of Lake Michigan, Lake Superior and Lake Huron shoreline are rapidly eroding posing serious hazards to homes and other buildings.
While many people think there’s nothing that can be done about shoreline degradation, there is a group that begs to differ.
The Great Lakes Coalition (GLC) is a Michigan non-profit organization whose membership consists of individual coastal property owners throughout the Great Lakes Basin, particularly along the Eastern shore of Lake Michigan. Founded in 1986, GLC was initiated to preserve the shorelines of the Great Lakes.
During a recent interview with Ron Watson, the President of GLC, he said that their primary mission is to improve shoreline resilience. “Our efforts over the last year have been focused on shoreline resilience, and we’ve put together position papers and proposals to try to get the state to do an annual budget for this.”
Watson said that all of the officers and directors of GLC are volunteers. However, he said the group has hired a lobbyist in Lansing to help the organization to work more closely with the Michigan government. “We have a very professional team,” Watson said. “We’ve got lawyers and engineers among our directors and officers. I myself am an engineer.”
Watson, who has been the President of GLC since 2018, holds multiple engineering degrees and worked for Bell Labs for over 42 years. Since retiring he has served as an officer on four nonprofit boards that are focused largely on improving the resilience and health of Lake Michigan beaches.
One of the initiatives in recent months has been to appeal to municipalities to pass resolutions supporting the work of the GLC. “We’re in the process of getting a lot of local municipalities and villages to pass short resolutions which we can hand the state telling them that they are in favor of this as a way to encourage the shoreline resilience.”
Last month, Watson appeared before the South Haven City Council to secure unanimous approval of Resolution 2024-45, a resolution supporting the GLC seeking a state-wide strategy regarding beach resilience.
“We think the best way to improve the shoreline resilience is through adding sand to the beach,” Watson said. “And here on the south end of Lake Michigan there is a lot of sand that is blocked by harbors and directed offshore that won’t come back by natural wave action but can be easily dredged back to shore. Michigan has about 300 miles of highly eroded shoreline much of it is a result of harbors and jetties blocking and redirecting the sand flow.”
Adding sand to the beaches and adding offshore structures to redirect the sediment is what Watson calls nature-based solutions. “The problem we have in the state of Michigan is currently they are not funding ‘a beach nourishment’ program,” Watson said. “They are participating in a coastal zone management program, but it does not include beach nourishment. Most states get partial funding from the federal government to do nourishment, and the Great Lakes Coalition is working to establish those programs in Michigan.”
Watson says that they are encouraged by talking to state legislators. “Not every person we talk to understands the problem nor are they all aware that there is a solution,” Watson said. “However, we have received some strong support and State Representative Joey Andrews has been spearheading the effort.”
Watson also explained that many legislators are surprised to find out how other states are funding “beach nourishment.” “It’s helpful for legislators to learn how many states use beach nourishment regularly to better manage shoreline erosion and to maintain a healthy beach.”
To learn more about the Great Lakes Coalition, you can visit their website at greatlakescoaliton.org
