Increasingly, people are using the beaches and shores where plovers nest for recreation and for building cottages and campgrounds. The nests and young birds are extremely vulnerable because they are right out in the open, instead of hidden in trees. People's presence upsets plovers, sometimes causing parents to abandon their nests. Also, chicks need to eat constantly in order to survive - they have to eat enough to triple their weight in the first two weeks of life. If they are frequently feeling threatened they can't concentrate on hunting for food, and their survival becomes unlikely.
Unleashed dogs destroy nests and harass chicks.
Vehicles such as ATVs are disastrous for the piping plover. They destroy nests and chicks and frighten the adults. Chicks can also get trapped in deep wheel tracks. Even something as innocent as flying a kite on the beach is a problem. Plovers seem to think kites are predatory birds, which again disturbs them from feeding.