Waikiki Beach Case Study

This is the last case study I will post. You have this week to work on ALL of the case studies that I have posted. 

Read the links below and answer the questions. 


1) Describe the causes of erosion on Waikiki Beach. (5 marks)
Waikiki Beach is a man made beach which is on the edge of disappearing. It has been having erosion problems since the late 1800's. It began when hotels and homes were begin developed too close to the natural shoreline. This blocks the natural flow of sand along the beach.  Because of the erosion it has caused a concrete slab near the waters edge! This concrete has sharp edges and is very uneven. The major cause is from buildings being built near the shoreline; however, as well the removal of the pier.  Because if this there is a loss of soil structure and soil acidity problems.

2) Describe past and present attempts that have been made to save the sand of Waikiki beach. Assess how well you think that they have worked. (10 marks)

Sand bags being used to save the beach!

There has been many different solutions put out to fix Waikiki beach but has only help in a very little way. With the sea level rising it is starting to claim bout a foot of the beach each year. There has been over ten projects done to save the beach since 1939; however, most of the projects were the same. They involved adding sand to the beach. One solution the states department came up with was to add 24,000 cubic yards of offshore sand across the beach. This "adding sand" project was done in June 2012 and costed about 2.2 million dollars. However one fourth of the sand was gone within a year after it was put there. I believe the sand idea was a good try. I doubt they could have not figured out it would have not worked. I think it could have worked if more research was done on the sands disappearance. The states department could have put the money into researching and then come up with a different sustainable solution which could have benefited the beach. Another minor project the city started was putting sand bags across the beach to keep the water from touching the beach and taking the sand with it.

3) Describe the economic, social, and environmental impacts of erosion of Waikiki beach for both the residents of the area, and tourists. (15 marks)

Eroding at its finest,

One of the major economic impact is the loss of tourists. If there are less tourists visiting the beach hotels revenue is affected. The hotels would not be making much because a lot of tourist are deciding against staying at a eroding beach. 58% of westbound visitors told in a survey they would not consider staying in Waikiki if the beach is no longer available. With the beach disappearing about 6000 thousand people could lose their job. The potential economic impact due to a complete erosion of the beach is estimated to be two billion dollars. Environmentally the erosion can have a major affect on the air quality. Soil particles which get suspended into the air by wind are easily inhaled by humans and animals. Breathing in these particles can lead to respiratory problems. This erosion also affects the soil nearby. Erosion gradually depletes organic matter and decreases soil productivity. This usually leads the soil to lose its ridged structure and makes the soil very hard and cloddy. This erosion can lead to flooding. If there was a major flood to take place it would impact the beach socially. The people living near the beach could lose their homes and become homeless. It can contaminate the drinking water which us humans need. By drinking the contaminated water we can get sick and risk death. Before as i was talking about the air quality, it also can affect us socially. We would be breathing in air which potentially can lead us to have respiratory problems.