To the Editor:
Re “Resisted for Blocking the View, Dunes Prove They Blunt Storms” (front page, Dec. 4): Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten E. Gillibrand of New York want to spend $1 billion to jump-start moribund Corps of Engineers storm damage reduction projects. That knee-jerk approach is absolutely the wrong way to go.
Instead, we need a prioritized, holistic approach that incorporates dunes, relocations, elevations and storm proofing.
Dunes can provide some protection, but in the biggest storms — bigger than Hurricane Sandy — they would do little to stop the destruction of property built under the false sense of security provided by the dunes.
Of course the Corps of Engineers is peddling the dune solution; it’s a win-win for the corps: if the town didn’t flood, the dune saved it; if it did flood, it would have been worse without the dune.
Here’s something to think about: If a storm slams a beach and there isn’t a house to destroy, is it still a natural disaster?
RYAN ALEXANDER
Pres., Taxpayers for Common Sense
San Francisco, Dec. 5, 2012
Original Publication URL: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/08/opinion/after-the-storm-new-questions-arise.html
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