Storms do not only sweep away chunks of the earth but also threatened species of sea grasses vital to holding the sand in place such as swamp oats, sea lyme and sea beach needle grass. The Massachusetts Task Force handles areas of high priority concern while the Volunteer Conservation Corp takes care of low priority plants. On Nantucket, artificial reefs to large amounts of new land are being considered as possible erosion solutions. As the dunes retreat, their sands are blown inland over the forests and marshes behind them. As the level of the oceans rise, the tides carry more of the shore out to sea.
Scientists bicker over the actual severity of the greenhouse effect and global warming.
Some experts deny that worldwide temperatures and seas are rising. But every year the land becomes a little smaller and the oceans a little bigger. The rise used to be one to ten centimeters per century. Losing Ground Against All Odds, Nantucket Is Trying To Hold Back The Sea. The Boston Globe.