Effects of Erosion and Pollution in Rhode Island

          Rhode Island is known for its luxurious beaches and beautiful weather, but this could all change in a matter of years. Every hurricane, flood, or storm that takes place in Rhode Island has shown a dramatic change in the state beaches. The coasts within the state are suceptiple to erosion and the storms that happen more and more frequently each year, cause a loss in the shoreline. In addition, the sea-levels are rising due to the greenhouse warming causing an even bigger increase in coastal erosion. A local earth science teacher, Mr. Reis explained to me, "If you look at Block Island (a small island off of Galilee), the beaches continue to erode and soon, it probably wont exist in years to come. This is also happening on Narragansett and Westerly beaches; they continue to shrink each year" (Reis).         There are plenty of signs of global warming in Rhode Island that residents are struggling to deal with each summer. Heat waves have become longer and the average temperature has increased 3.3 F over the past 100 years, meaning the number of hot days in the summer have increased. Due to the warm weather, there is also a water shortage in Rhode Island in which 35% of the people depend on and the seafood that residents love so much will become diseased with the infections and bacterias that increase in warm waters. Also, as mentioned before, the ocean will be rising 1-12 inches over the next fifty years resulting in stronger storms that will wash away beaches, roads, and homes.       How can residents help? Stop polluting the beloved Rhode Island land! Over TWO BILLION gallons of untreated sewage were sent into the Narrraganestt Bay and it's watershed evey year from combined sewage oveflow and recently volunteers picked up 8094 plastic bags, 7186 plastic bottles, 12,755 caps and lids, 6169 plates and pieces of disposable cutlery, 1486 balloons, and 43,023 cigarettes and filters. A local resident, Lynn DiTusa lives in Exeter-West Greenwich, Rhode Island and mentioned, "I get involved in the beach clean up each year! It shocks me each year to see the amount of garbage we find all over the place. It is a real problem!" (DiTusa). If residents and volunteers could help decline the amount of polluntants that are all over the state, these issues could decline quickly and the great towns these residents live in could last much longer!