Over the last forty years or so, the rapid rate of coastal damage on the island has been quite noticeable. The damage is due to a number of factors, including extensive drought and devastating storms.
Anguilla has been hit hard by severe drought over the years. When these droughts occur, the vegetation dies all across the island – especially around the coastal areas.
When vegetation dies, the top soil becomes dry and very loose and is easily blown away by heavy winds. Any subsequent rainfall – light, moderate, or heavy – then washes the remaining topsoil away. This, in turn, causes severe cracks to form across the landscape of the island, including along the coastline. The fragile coastline can begin to crumble, portions of which then fall off and drop into the sea.
In addition to severe drought, Anguilla has been battered by frequent storms and devastating hurricanes over the years. These storms tend to produce powerful ocean waves that lash against the coastline – pounding, vibrating and cracking it.
Anguilla is then thrown into a situation where much of the vegetation is gone – due to drought – and where much of the coastline is disintegrating – due to drought and storm damage.
Evidence of the disintegration of limestone and coral composites of Anguilla’s soil and coastal areas have been noticed along the entire coastline, especially along the east and southeast sections of the island. Erosive damage is also evident on the high side of Anguilla – the north facing side from the tip of West End into Limestone Bay and along the northern coast into the Shoal Bay area.
Added to Anguilla’s coastal erosion caused by climate factors, is the practice of building along the beach front areas. As we move more and more to building at the water’s edge, we contribute to making the coastline vulnerable, causing the sea to move in and claim some of the land. This type of erosion is evident at Cove Castle and at Shoal Bay east where the old Gwen’s restaurant was located, and higher up on the beach where portions of a fence have been taken out by the sea over a period of time.
The practice of sandmining poses another real threat to Anguilla’s coastal areas and beaches, especially in places like Junks Hole Bay, Meades Bay, the Forest Bay, Savana Bay and the entire east and northeast areas of the island.
When the sand is removed from inland (close to the beach) and we have high seas that come and wash over whatever little sand dune might be there separating the ocean from inland, then the sea has to find a new place inland. Evidence of this is observed at Mimi Bay area and Windward Point where it is noticeable that the sea is now way inland.
The government of Anguilla is looking to implement stringent measures to stop the practice of illegal sandmining. Premier, Dr. Ellis Webster said he had received reports of illegal sandmining in the Savana Bay area.
Speaking to this issue at the government’s press briefing on Monday, March 28, Dr Webster noted: “This is illegal, it is dangerous and it needs to stop.
“[Although] there are fines for sandmining, at some point we may have to make legislation that is so stringent and rigid, that persons will have to go to jail for removing this natural resource – which is so essential to our protection.
“I have been very, very bothered by this, and want everybody under the sound of my voice to know there will be consequences for stealing sand. It is unacceptable when you destroy these natural sand dunes that are there to protect us and protect our beaches.”
While much of Anguilla’s coastal erosion has happened over time, due to global warming and extremes in climate changes, there are things that can be done by us in Anguilla to mitigate this, even as it has been done elsewhere in the region – Grenada, for example.
In Grenada, huge meshes are thrown over the hillside to hold the rocks in place allowing for vegetation that can withstand harsh weather conditions to grow and become firmly fixed into the land.
Perhaps we in Anguilla can become more passionate about holding on to our 36 square miles of land and beaches, as the erosion of the coastline is causing us to lose some of it.
