Death of Beaches

Last few weeks Indian media is highlighting state of indian beaches and urging public to stand against new ports that new government is planning.
I think they missed a major point in discussion "SLR: Sea level rise". You need structures to protect your citizens from surging sea level. The claim that you will loose sandy beaches is same as there will be no sun tomorrow. When sea level rises it will build new sandy beaches; "a natural phenomena". I do agree ports can damage environment but compare the following.

More than 17 million people in Bangladesh would be displaced by a sea level rise of 1.5 metres, warned Jonathan Bamber, a professor at Bristol University in England, disclosing a study report which found that a collapse of the ice sheet of West Antarctica would push up world sea levels by 3.3 metres (11 ft) over hundreds of years. The U.N. Climate Panel projected in a 2007 report that world sea levels would rise by between 18 and 59 cm (7-24 inches) this century because of global warming -- excluding any accelerating thaw of Antarctica or Greenland.

The threat of rise in sea-levels as a result of changing climate makes the coastal resources, coastal infrastructure and population living the coastal areas highly vulnerable. At the same time, as the rise in sea-level is likely to be a gradual process numerous adaptation options, such as building dikes and floodwalls, wetland restoration, afforestation, and relocation of threatened buildings, also exist. Moreover, climate change could manifest through extreme events like cyclones and hence a proper understanding of the current coastal zone management practices, such as early warning systems and hazard insurance, could provide useful insights about the potential future adaptation strategies.

In this context it may be worth nothing the experiences with the super cyclone in 1999 that devastated the state of Orissa. There is general agreement that cyclone devastation was worsened significantly by deforestation on the coast. Satellite pictures show that 2.5 square kilometers of mangroves were lost in the 70s every year,. Without the protection
of forests, the Super cyclone was believed to have traveled as much as 50 kilometers inland.

The report also predicts huge coastal erosion due to a rise in sea levels of about 40 cm resulting from faster melting of glaciers in the Himalayan and Hindukush ranges. It can affect half-a-million people in India because of excessive flooding in coastal areas and also can increase the salinity of ground water in the Sunderbans and surface water in coastal areas.

Media should address erosion & SLR before they object new ports. My strategy will be to increase forest around these ports and prevent erosion. Economy & Environment must go hand-in-hand. We need fund to finance protection against SLR.