Oahu: A Disappearing Destination

By: Amanda Peña

O’ahu: A

Disappearing

DestinationBy: Amanda Peña

Beautiful

• Located between the two Hawaiian islands of Kauai and Maui

• Land area covers 596.7 square miles• Third largest island in Hawaii

Images retrieved from https://www.tripadvisor.com/ on 11-23-14

• Even though it’s not the largest island in Hawaii, it is the most populated with 953,199 people living there. It is often referred to as “the gathering place” because of its large population.

• The island is sandwiched between two mountain ranges which resulted from two volcanoes: Wai’anae and Kahalu’u. When these shield volcanoes erupted millions of years ago, their halves slid underneath the ocean. The halves that were left form the east and west walls of O’ahu.

• O’ahu has mountain ranges, sandy beaches, lush rainforest, and volcanoes

Image retrieved from http://3d-pictures.picphotos.net/world-raised-relief-maps/1/ on 11-23-14

Kahalu’u Mountains

Wai’anae Mountains

Yellow-billed Cardinal

Pacific Golden Plover

Bamboo Orchid

Indian MongooseApapane Bird

Shampoo Ginger

Green Sea Turtle

Hawaiian Monk Seal

Fiery Skipper

Images retrieved from http://wildlifeofhawaii.com/ on 11-22-14

• Pearl Harbor: This national historical landmark features five historic sites memorializing December 7, 1941. This is when there was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The attack led to the United States' entry into World War II.

Pearl Harbor War Image retrieved from http://edu225gcu.wikispaces.com/Pearl+Harbor+WebQuest/ on 11-23-14

Pearl Harbor being attacked in 1941 Pearl Harbor Tourist Site Today

Pearl Harbor Image retrieved from http://http://www.hawaiilife.com/articles/2014/11/historic-pearl-harbor-attractions// on 11-23-14

• Waikiki Beach: This area was a retreat for Hawaiian royalty in the 1800s who enjoyed surfing there on early forms of surfboards. Waikiki Beach hosts many events every year, including surf competitions, outdoor performances, hula dancing and outrigger canoe races.

Image retrieved from http://http://www.best-of-oahu.com/waikiki-beach.html/ on 11-23-14

• Diamond Head Crater: This crater got its English name when British seafarers thought that the calcite crystals embedded in the crater were diamonds.

Image retrieved from http://rebloggy.com/post/photography-landscape-scenery-hawaii-oahu-diamond-head/19576441626/ on 11-23-14

• President Obama lived in Honolulu, O’ahu most of his childhood.

• Many O’ahu sugar and pineapple plantation workers came from places like China, Japan, Korea, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Russia, and the Philippines. This makes O’ahu a place that has a huge mix of different nationalities and cultures.

• O’ahu has been featured in many movies and television shows such as Jurassic Park, Blue Crush, and the Hunger Games.

Obama Image retrieved from http://www.allhawaiinews.com/2013_11_01_archive.html on 11-23-14Hunger Games Image retrieved from http://collider.com/jennifer-lawrence-hunger-games-silver-linings-playbook-interview/ on 11-23-14

• News Clip

• Studies have shown that approximately 2% of Hawaii’s shoreline is eroding. Nearly ¼ of the Hawaiian Islands’ beaches have significantly eroded over the past 50 years. O’ahu is one of the top three Hawaiian Islands most effected, with 24% of its beaches being narrowed or lost.

• Researchers from the University of Hawaii and the Department of Land and Natural Resources have concluded that rising sea-levels are the primary factor for this increased beach erosion. The Hawaiian Islands have reported a sea-level rise of about 6 to 8 inches per century.

• Scientists have predicted that Hawaii’s sea-level is likely to rise 10 inches by 2050 and 2 feet by 2100.

Image retrieved from http://treehugger.com/ on 11-23-14

• Global warming causing rising sea-levels

• Sea walls

• Significant increases in golf course development

• Violent storms

• What is global warming? It is also called the greenhouse effect and is the gradual increase in the overall temperature of the earth's atmosphere. Scientists say that it is caused by increased levels of carbon dioxide, chlorofluorocarbons, and other pollutants.

• A pattern of global warming has been happening causing temperatures to rise over the decades

• Global warming has caused two things to happen that have contributed to the increases in the sea level over the last several thousand years:

thermal expansion: when ocean water expands as it warms the melting of huge deposits of land ice like glaciers and ice

sheets.

• This pattern of sea waters rising has caused beaches, such as the ones on O’ahu, to erode at a faster rateImage retrieved from http://www.nasa.gov/ on

11-23-14

• Global warming is caused by natural and human-made conditions. Although we cannot stop the natural causes, there are some things that we can do to reduce the effects of global warming:

Conserve water-cities use large amounts of energy when distributing and purifying water, which uses greenhouse gas emissions. Conserving water reduces the amount of energy used.

Plant trees- plants take in carbon dioxide and let out oxygen. Because carbon dioxide gas causes global warming, planting trees and plants can slow down this process.

Reduce fossil fuel use- using energy produces fossil fuels. Making a conscience effort to use less or alternate energy forms can help decrease fossil fuels.

Image retrieved from http://squirrelers.com/2012/04/16/10-ways-to-lower-your-water-bill/ on 11-23-14

• Since O’ahu is the most populated island in Hawaii, a lot of development on its beach fronts has occurred, such as houses, beach resorts, stores, hotels and restaurants

• Developers have had to build numerous sea walls to help protect their beachfront properties

• Seawalls restrict the natural movement and shifting of the shoreline sand

• This restriction stops the sand from being able to deposited and withdrawn at a healthy rate, which has actually increased beach erosion over time

Image retrieved from http://www.tournorfolk.co.uk/happisburgh.html on 11-23-14

• Some solutions to this increasing problem is to build further inland (so seawalls aren’t needed) and to move existing development more inland

• Many developers have had trouble “buying into” building more inland because tourists put a high value in being close to the water for easy access to beach activities and scenic views.

• Also, many developers oppose relocating their structures because of the cost involved in doing this.

• Lawmakers need to revise their laws to increase the distance builders and developers are allowed to build from the water.

• New laws could be made to ban sea walls. Beachfront property owners oppose these potential laws because they wouldn’t have anything at all to temporarily protect their property.

• Banana and ti plant farmers are having their farmlands destroyed by rising golf course development

• Many Japanese golf course developers that are wanting to make money off of tourism are having resistance from local farmers

• Farmers lose their developed farmland and even if they are lucky enough to have developers pay to relocate their farmland, it has lost a lot of its value because the crops are not as developed/mature as the previous ones and will yield less product

• Golf resorts displace people and farms, destroy animal habitats, pollute surrounding water and air with pesticides and fertilizers, and deplete water supplies

Image retrieved from http://www.watertronics.com/golf-course-pumping-systems/ on 11-23-14

• Violent storms, like tsunamis and hurricanes, move the beach sand into deeper waters from which it cannot return to the beach.

• Large winter storms can carry sand offshore by rip currents, and this sand may be permanently lost if it is deposited at such great depths that summer waves cannot return it to the beach system.

Images retrieved from http://cosmicconvergence.org/?p=1109 on 11-23-14

• Significant decrease in tourism- many tourists come to O’ahu to lounge on, walk on, and “play” on its beaches. Erosion and loss of beaches will have a direct impact on how many tourists visit this island. These visitors spend around $11.4 billion dollars in Hawaii each year, making tourism the state’s largest employer. Less tourists would directly effect O’ahu’s economy.

• Negative effect on the environment- many animals and plants will lose important habitats. For example, the Hawaiian monk seal, an endangered species, gives birth and nurses its babies on these beaches. The green sea turtle, another threatened species, lays eggs in O’ahu’s beachfront sand.

• Will all of O’ahu erode away over the next million years?

• Will scientist come up with better solutions to stop the erosion of beaches in the future?

• Will new additional factors that cause erosion be discovered over time?

• Chlorofluorocarbons- Any of various halocarbon compounds consisting of carbon, hydrogen, chlorine, and fluorine, once used widely as aerosol propellants and refrigerants. Volatile chlorofluorocarbons are believed to cause depletion of the atmospheric ozone layer.

• Calcite- A common crystalline form of natural calcium carbonate, CaCO3, that is the basic constituent of limestone, marble, and chalk.

• Embedded- To cause to be an integral part of a surrounding whole

• Outrigger- a vessel fitted with such a float or beam. • Memorializing- to present a memorial; petition

• Lush- Abundant; plentiful

• Pesticides- insect repellent

• Fertilizers-Any of a large number of natural and synthetic materials, including manure and nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium compounds, spread on or worked into soil to increase its capacity to support plant growth.

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Dean, Cornelia. "Hawaii's Beaches Are in Retreat, and Its Way of LIfe May Follow." New York Times, Late Edition (East Coast) 15 May 2012: n. pag. ProQuest. Web. 16 Nov. 2014.

"Environment Hawai'i." Environment Hawai'i. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2014.

Main, Douglas. "Hawaiian Island Dissolving from Inside." LiveScience. TechMedia Network, 21 Dec. 2012. Web. 15 Nov. 2014.

"Oahu Slowing Eroding from Below - Weather.com." The Weather Channel. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2014.

Pappas, Stephanie. "Hawaiian Island Dissolving From Within." LiveScience. TechMedia Network, 27 Dec. 2012. Web. 15 Nov. 2014.

Platt, Anne E. "Toxic Green; the Trouble with Golf." World Watch May-June 1994: 27. General OneFile. Web. 15 Nov. 2014. <http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE|A15475523&v=2.1&u=j015915&it=r&p=GPS&sw=w&asid=874e4ff977faf63ac328b701beddf0fe>.

Whiting, Candace. "Will Development Wreck Oahu? It Is Not Too Late To Save The North Shore." Candace Calloway Whiting. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Nov. 2014.