Surfrider News: Cocoa Beach Chapter
By Jackie Beatty
http://cocoabeach.surfrider.org
cocoabeach@surfrider.org
Cocoa Beach Surfrider is looking for people to become stakeholders — someone who adopts a beach access to monitor and repair the stakes and rope set up to protect the dunes.
Recently, stakeholder Bill Hausmann requested stakes at his beach — 2nd Street North. Surfrider had just run out of stakes, so a call was put in to the City of Cocoa Beach, who happily provided us with 100 new stakes. The stakes were taken over to Bill’s house and painted, then placed onto the beach on a Friday afternoon. The stakes looked awesome! Bill was stoked and left for his trip to Belize.
The following Monday, the stakes were missing. Tom Barrett of Juice N’ Java Café notified the police and a report was taken. That same day, Tom found the stakes stashed in the trash! He put the stakes back on the beach and everything was great until the following Thursday morning when they were missing again — but this time they couldn’t be found. The police were notified again and another report was taken, but since the stakes were considered “stolen” this time, the act counted as theft and charges could be filed. Tom painted new stakes and placed them on the beach and that is where they’ve stayed. Bill and Juice N’ Java are the stakeholders for 2nd Street North and this is a stellar example of teamwork in a small town. Surfider would like to thank them both for taking initiative and helping out.
Dune restoration and dune protection account for just two of Cocoa Beach Surfrider’s many campaigns. Surfrider has planted over 5,000 native dune plants and continues to conduct annual plantings. Dunes hold our beaches together. They absorb the impact of storm surge and high waves, preventing flooding of inland structures. During large ocean storms, waves crash into the dunes and the sand is resupplied to the beach in front of the dunes that have been eroded by the storm. Where vegetation can get a foothold, windblown sand grains get batted down to the base of the plant and the sand surface rises, one grain at a time. Even though beach grass is a hardy plant — tolerant to high salinity conditions, direct sun, extreme heat, lack of fertile soil, and a fluctuating water supply — it can’t survive being trampled by vehicle or man. As part of its resistance to salinity and drying conditions the plant has developed a thick, brittle stalk that snaps easily when walked or driven upon. The passage of only one vehicle or a few people over the dune causes deterioration to the vegetation that helps to trap and hold the sand in place. More plants on the beach equal less erosion.
If you are interested in becoming a stakeholder, check out our website — http://cocoabeachsurfrider.org/stakeholders — to see which beach accesses still need a stakeholder. Then, email HYPERLINK “mailto:jackiebeatty@yahoo.com”jackiebeatty@yahoo.com, and please remember: if it’s green, don’t step on it.
Upcoming Surfrider events:
June 2: Watermans Challenge, 7 a.m., International Palms Resort
June 19: Chapter Meeting, 6 p.m., Café Surfinista
June 20: International Surfing Day, 5:30 p.m., Coconuts on the Beach
June 23: International Surfing Day events, 9 a.m., Lori Wilson Park
Whether you surf, body board, swim, fish, kayak, bike, walk, or just enjoy a clean healthy beach, please consider joining the Surfrider Foundation. We hold regular meetings on the third Tuesday of every month, 6 p.m. at Café Surfinista, 86 North Orlando Ave. in Cocoa Beach. Hope to see you there!