Did you go to the beach this summer? A few weeks ago, my family returned from our annual pilgrimage to Long Beach Island, a barrier island off the coast of New Jersey. I also grew up there, in the town of Beach Haven. My parents still live just a block from the ocean, in a house they bought shortly after they married. I moved away to attend college, but for the last 40 years I've returned every summer, first with friends and now with my own family in tow. The sound of the waves, the feel of the sand, and the smell of the sea bring back childhood memories of building sandcastles on the beach with my cousins -- memories that are now interspersed with newer ones of my own children running along this same shoreline. I'd hoped to see my grandchildren enjoy the same simple pleasures in the years to come, but that possibility is increasingly doubtful as the effects of climate change are rapidly transforming the nature of our coastlines and the viability of our many beloved beach towns.

"...the effects of climate change are rapidly transforming the nature of our coastlines and the viability of our many beloved beach towns ... Ask your local, state, and national politician what they plan to do to address climate change if they are elected."

This fall we have a chance to stem the tide of rising seas by electing local, regional, and national candidates who support solutions to address climate change threats. And we are running out of chances. At the time of the last census, Coastal counties in the US were home to over 127 million people or approximately 40% of the nation's population. Growth rates in coastal counties have been more than twice the national rate since that time, and millions more are vacationing at our beaches each year. We have the power to unite and chart a new course to protect these coastal communities from further physical and economic destruction.

"This fall we have a chance to stem the tide of rising seas by electing local, regional, and national candidates who support solutions to address climate change threats. And we are running out of chances."

Global warming is happening much more quickly than predicted. For example: the melting Greenland ice sheet is already the largest contributor to global sea level rise, and according to a new study published in the journal Communications Earth Environment, the ice melt in 2019 shattered all previous records with more than twice the ice loss that occurred in 2003 when NASA first started making measurements. Another study by the Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center at Ohio State found that the Greenland ice fields have reached an irreversible tipping point. In other words, even if the air and ocean were to stop warming today, the ice sheet will continue to melt faster than it will be replenished. All that ice melt will end up in the Atlantic Ocean and the implications for my hometown, and coastal communities worldwide, are dire. According to NOAA, high tide flooding frequency is now more than twice as likely as it was in 2000, and additional sea level rises will submerge homes, businesses and infrastructure along our coastlines. Any elected official who isn't well-versed in this phenomenon and well-armed with a plan to address it, isn't qualified to represent a coastal resident -- or anyone else, for that matter.

"Global warming is happening much more quickly than predicted. For example: the melting Greenland ice sheet is already the largest contributor to global sea level rise ... and has reached an irreversible tipping point."

Fortunately, the same natural forces that threaten our environment also provide us with a significant opportunity to combat climate change. Renewable energy resources like wind and solar are ready and able to replace fossil fuels. Their use immediately reduces the impact of energy use on climate by reducing the greenhouse gases that cause global warming. I can speak to their effectiveness because I've been a technical consultant to the renewable energy industry for over 30 years, working with equipment suppliers, utilities, and project developers to design, install, and operate wind and solar projects in more than 50 countries around the world. Naysayers often point to outdated information on cost and performance and argue that we can't afford to make the transition to renewable energy but wind and solar are as much of an economic choice these days as they are an environmental one. In the last 10 years, the cost of solar has dropped almost 90% and the cost of wind has dropped by close to 50% making renewables the least expensive option for generating electricity in 2/3 of the world. Job creation is another reason to choose renewable energy. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, solar installers and wind turbine technicians are the fastest growing occupations projected between 2019 and 2029. For economic reasons alone, transitioning to renewables is a choice we can't afford to ignore. Yet this win-win solution for addressing climate change and shoring up our economy is still not a priority for many of the candidates in the 2020 election, including our current President and others down the ballot.

"According to NOAA, high tide flooding frequency is now more than twice as likely as it was in 2000, and additional sea level rises will submerge homes, businesses and infrastructure along our coastlines."

For many coastal communities in the US, a period of rapid change is already well underway and most have committed significant resources to adaptation efforts like erecting seawalls, building higher dunes, and elevating buildings. But fortifying our beach towns and coastal harbors is not a long-term solution. Adaptation can only go so far. Without a major step change to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, we face a coastal catastrophe within 20 years -- the lifetime of a single hermit crab.

"Renewable energy resources like wind and solar are ready and able to replace fossil fuels. Their use immediately reduces the impact of energy use on climate by reducing the greenhouse gases that cause global warming."

My love for the beach has always propelled me into action. At an early age, I joined every possible effort to preserve our wetlands, protect our sea life, and clean up our shorelines. I pursued a career as an engineer in an effort to identify and facilitate solutions to the environmental problems I saw in my community. This summer, I hope you were fortunate enough to be on the Cape, down the Shore, at the Beach, or in the Bay. If so, think about what the rising sea level or a hurricane will do to your favorite beach community. Ask your local, state, and national politician what they plan to do to address climate change if they are elected. And if you want to keep going down the shore in years to come, vote for the ones with a plan.