How you can Help Save Oʻahu’s Beaches
The City and County of Honolulu has actively worked to preserve O‘ahu’s sandy beaches and shorelines by combatting rapid erosion and permanent beach loss. Since the 1960s, the City has passed and enforced laws that restrict coastal development, including the construction of human-placed barriers, and requiring structures to be set back from the shoreline.
Did you know?
Ocean levels in Hawai‘i are estimated to rise more than 3 feet within the next several decades, and the devastating impacts from high tides will be felt years earlier.
Nearly 25 percent of O‘ahu’s beaches have narrowed or were completely eroded due to human-placed barriers like seawalls, rocks, sandbags and plantings (even native species if artificially planted and irrigated).
Understand the Risks and Responsibilities
If you own coastal property and plan to renovate or build
- Do not add any shoreline barriers to your property.
- Build structures at the farthest mauka end of your property and follow all permitting requirements.
If you’re considering shoreline property ownership
- Check to see if the property is located in a flood-prone area. Information about flood-prone coastal areas can be found in the National Flood Insurance Program maps and the State of Hawai‘i Sea Level Rise Viewer.
- The State of Hawai‘i has estimated that, as the ocean rises, annual flooding will impact over 13,000 residents and nearly 4,000 structures.
A webpage of the City and County of Honolulu, supported by the Hawaiʻi Office of Planning and Sustainable Development, Coastal Zone Management Program, pursuant to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Award, Award No. NA18NOS4190082, funded in part by the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as amended, administered by the Office for Coastal Management, National Ocean Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, United States Department of Commerce.
The views expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of NOAA or the U.S. Department of Commerce.