Global Degradation: It’s on Our Beaches
I am writing about a concern of mine with regard to our beaches. Since the oil spill in February, I have noticed an increasing number of dead birds and marine mammals on the beach.
When the oil spill occurred, I, like so many of the citizens of Huntington Beach, rushed to do whatever possible to help.
Finding the dead wildlife on the beaches was quite painful and only reinforced my concerns about our overconsumption of resources.
Since the initial days and weeks of that tragedy, I have continued to find many dead birds (at least three a week) and mammals along the beaches. Just this week I came upon two recently killed baby seals and a wounded sea gull, as well as three dead seals in various stages of decomposition.
I am aware of the importance of tourism and wonder if the rush to declare our beaches “safe” after the oil spill was valid. We all recognize that the beauty of our community lies in the beauty of the beaches out our front doors. As the British Petroleum tankers once again appear off our coast, it’s business as usual. And yet, I wonder about the message coming from the beaches.
As we face the crises of global degradation, we don’t have to look far; it’s right in front of us.
FLORENCE HORGAN
Huntington Beach
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