Letter: Beach nourishment must be done in winter

In 1990 the Town of Hilton Head Island announced a beach renourishment project to take place that spring and summer. Those in the tourism business pointed out at a meeting with town officials the timing would severely impact tourism. The response was generally, “Don’t bother us with facts, our minds are made up.” They claimed the project could not be undertaken in the winter months because it was too dangerous, even though the dredge company was wrapping up a project on Long Island in the winter.

We were right and the town was wrong. Tourists complained bitterly that the noise of bulldozers with their beeping, and the bright lights at night made it impossible to sleep. During the day, impaired access to the beach further spoiled their vacation. Many demanded refunds of their rental fees and many said they would never return to a place that has so little regard for visitors. Though it’s difficult to quantify, I suspect the money lost by the tourism industry far exceeded the cost of the renourishment project.

Since then, renourishment projects have been conducted in the off-season, proving it’s not too dangerous.

Now the town has incompetently allowed the latest project to slip into the summer, impacting both tourists and turtles. This project must be canceled and rescheduled for winter; guarantees and penalties must be put in place.

Why are we not hearing from the Chamber of Commerce and the mayor on this? Is it not their job to protect tourism?

This story was originally published March 31, 2016 at 8:00 PM with the headline "Letter: Beach nourishment must be done in winter."