the guy who gave a ride to Portsmouth Island, Captain Austin, went on and on about the 3vi1 government for having come along, fertilized the island and planting trees, shrubs, and grasses to protect the dunes on Ocracoke. Ocracoke was originally just a lot of sand, a lot of shifting sand. So, he and a lot of other folks are pissed off because they think that, naturally, there wouldn't be any grasses, trees, bushes, and shrubs, so why get all freaked out now about people walking on the beaches? thing is, of course, and he acknowledged this, if it weren't for the government protecting the damn beaches to begin with, there wouldn't be a road from the dock to the town of Ocracoke itself. A town that, today, is largely only possible because of tourism. No road, no tourism. The island might not even be there because the sands shift so much ...
He was funny, bitching about the government while steering a boat he claimed belong to the US Coast Guard, a boat from which he made his living, to an Island preserved by the U.S. government so tourist could go there walk through the abandoned ghost town, go shelling, and (for some) just lie on the beach or, possibly, camp or go fishing. As he said himself, were it not for the government, the shores of these beaches would be crowded with condos and beachside McMansions.
BTW, I think Mike Yates should go there on his next stop across the country, to study the political economy of the area.
Anyway, I'm writing because I'm wondering if anyone knows more about the controversy over the barrier island beaches, the government closures, and why are these folks so certain that there is some conspiracy on the part of the government and the Audubon society to keep people off beaches just because they can and that's what governments do: prohibit people from doing things just because they can.
They seem to be convinced that the grasses on the islands weren't there "naturally" but were planted there by the government so that now it's all about the government trying to ruin the island economy by closing down some of the beaches to recreational activities.
There is, of course, this issue, http://www.outerbanksshells.com/beachdriving.html. That's about closing beaches from 4x4s that go directly on the beach so people can fish, fly kites, etc. They're closing some of the access points to protect the birds and turtles. But this is about something more than just the birds, this is about a claim that the government doesn't want anyone stepping on beach grass or somesuch.
I read the letter that is the object of complaint and it doesn't seem particularly ominous to me. They don't want people driving vehicles directly on the beach.
Also, if Gar is reading, is it true that some environmentalist oppose windfarming b/c it might hurt birds?
shag
-- http://cleandraws.com Wear Clean Draws ('coz there's 5 million ways to kill a CEO)