Hurricane Ian should warn us all about what can happen with expanded Beaufort marina

Learn from Ian

The horrific scenes from Florida after Ian show among other casualties destroyed boats and marinas.

The cost of clearing these wrecked and abandoned boats will be significant. Several boats were abandoned in Beaufort waters after prior storms, and the removal process was tedious, involving taxpayer expense.

With the proposed massive expansion of the City of Beaufort marina, I envision a horrific scene after Hurricane XYZ strikes at a future date with dozens of destroyed boats, huge chunks of marina debris pushed into the marsh and onto the shoreline, the Henry Chambers Park, the present marina parking lot and Bay Street. Who will remove the boats and debris, and who will pay for the cleanup?

Our incoming City Council could require the new management company to provide a bond for the removal of boats and marina debris as a condition of the marina expansion. In addition, the CEO of the company should personally guarantee the timely and full compliance with the terms for removal of boats and debris.

Our City Council candidates should clearly state their positions on protecting our city’s waterfront. Maybe the best solution though is no expansion of the existing marina.

William P. Hendricks, Beaufort

Save our trees

About the loss of our tree canopy – one by one, project by project, the local governments have not made saving trees a priority. If so, the trees would not be disappearing every time a developer tries to squeeze another dollar out of a property.

The authorities have given only lip service to tree protection. Also, zoning and ordinances can protect trees.

Neighborhoods have rights as well. There is no appropriate price to charge developers for cutting down too many trees or significant ones -- they are just too valuable to be destroyed.

We are asked for input at meetings, 10-year plans are grandly presented with trumpets and fanfare, and then the plans are outdated or need revision, or there are loopholes in the ordinance.

Smoke and mirrors have worked so far while the tree canopy becomes a memory.

Jerry Floyd, St. Helena Island

What about the unwanted?

Abortion foes rally around their slogan, “right to life.”

Let’s break this down. Right to life means a “good” life, right? Well, no. An unwanted baby comes into the world with an immediate handicap. No one wants him.

You say, “He can be adopted.” Well, no. Did you know that mixed race and minority children are adopted less often? We want white infants.

What happens to unwanted children whose numbers are sure to grow with total abortion bans? They become wards of the State and come into the foster care system.

Who raises them and pays for their upbringing? You, the taxpayer.

What is life like for a child in foster care? Often, it means a lifetime of instability, insecurity, no or little contact with family.

When the child reaches age 18, the case is closed. For some, with no chance of higher education, the end result is poverty, drug addiction and emotional problems.

Here is where abortion foes lose touch with reality. Ask your legislator: Why do you condemn innocent children to an unhappy life at best and misery and suffering at worst?

Terry Gibson, Beaufort

Ensure S.C. benefits

Surely, in the wake of Hurricane Ian, we Lowcountry folk are reminded how much we love our home. Indeed there is no place quite like it.

Due to global warming, the threats to our home are increasing, but what are we to do? Fortunately science tells us what we need to do and the climate provisions of the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act can help us protect the Lowcountry.

The act provides $385 billion dollars for clean energy through tax breaks, loans and grants. This will accelerate deployment of already growing, effective renewable technologies to homes, businesses, power plants, factories, farms and marginalized neighborhoods.

Billions will go toward research and development of new technologies.

However we feel about the partisan legislation, surely we want a fair share of these funds to come to South Carolina.

If you agree, please contact our leaders at every level and ask them what they are doing to see that we capitalize on these incentives.

If enough of us do this, the political barriers can become open doors.

There is no place like home. Let’s enjoy it everyday and take care of it, too.

Tim Joy, Beaufort