State Senator Kim LaSata has introduced a new bill designed to help mitigate shoreline erosion. She toured St. Joseph and New Buffalo this week to get a look at coastal erosion and chat with concerned residents. LaSata says her bill would establish a permitting process for beach nourishment at state parks, residential properties, and recreation areas owned by cities along Great Lakes shorelines. It would allow for the addition of sand taken from the lake to eroding beach areas.
“We haven’t seen any rules or regulations that have allowed us to be able to take the sand from the lake and bring it back up on to the shore,” LaSata said.
Senate Bill 974 would also have the Michigan Department of Energy, Great Lakes and Environment inspect potential sites where sand could be extracted and deposited to consider public health, safety, welfare, and environmental risks before deciding on a permit application. LaSata says erosion caused by rising water levels has washed away yards of beachfront over the past two decades and has now reached a point of seriously threatening homes and infrastructure. She saw for herself this week in New Buffalo, where areas that used to be beach are now part of Lake Michigan.
