Sea Cliffs, Beaches, and Coastal Valleys of San Diego County.
Some Amazing Histories and Some Horrifying Implications. By Gerald G. Kuhn
and Francis P. Shepard. Berkeley: University of California Press,
1984. Bibliography. Illustrations. Maps. Glossary. Index. 193 Pages. $22.50.
Reviewed by Philip R. Pryde, Professor of Geography at San
Diego State University, past chairman of the San Diego County Planning
Commission, and editor and partial author of San Diego: An
Introduction to the Region (Second Edition, 1984).
The ongoing and inevitable destruction of San Diego's
coastline is one of those critically important subjects that historically seems
to have been almost ignored. At last this subject is tackled with dedication and
persuasion by Kuhn and Shepard in Sea Cliffs, Beaches, and Coastal Valleys
of San Diego County.
Persons unfamiliar with southern California's geomorphology
appear to believe that our coastline is a fairly permanent feature of the
landscape. In fact, it is not. Continuous, though unpredictable, erosion is its
natural condition.
Using the eloquent medium of photography, Kuhn and Shepard
document the irrepressible regression of the San Diego County coastline. Many
of their photos are paired, comparing present conditions with how the same
coastal area looked in the past. Especially graphic are the pictures of the
destruction of the Strand at Oceanside (p. 58), the map showing the loss of
entire city blocks in Encinitas (p. 35), and the account of the Great Flood of 1862 (p. 32.).
Even if one does no more than glance through the book at the
illustrations, the authors' message is clear: treat the coastline with
understanding and deference, or be prepared to suffer the consequences. Nature
is at home along the county's coast, and it makes up its own rules of the game.
The book's photographs document the sad and expensive extent to which we have
not understood these rules, and the price we have subsequently paid.
Although the photos alone are worth the price of the book,
those who study the text will learn of the processes which have formed, and
removed, our coastal landforms. Foremost among these are the periodic severe
winter storms, most recently witnessed in February 1980 and January 1983, which
may produce more coastal changes in a few days than the calmer intervening
periods do over a large number of years.
This is a book that on the whole is to be highly praised. A
technical question could be raised regarding occasional possible
non-sequiturs or implied casual relationships that are unconvincingly
documented, most of which seem to stem from the authors' enthusiasm for volcanic
explanations. Also, a more restrained promotional effort, as in the sub-title
and the opening sentence of the conclusion, might have been employed. Given the
serious nature of the study and the wording of the sub-title, in fact, the
conclusion section seems rather brief (less than three full pages), and
unfortunately offers little in the way of recommendations as to what steps
coastal planners might take (adequate setbacks, etc.) to prevent economic losses
in the future. These points, however, do not detract from the overall value of
the book in graphically depicting what all too many of us
suspect, but don't really want to admit,-that our coastline is highly ephemeral.
The book will be of great interest to all who use our coastal
areas, and to all who want to better understand the natural history of our
region. It should be mandatory reading for all who live, work, build, plan, or
buy in the coastal zone. From now on, there will be no excuse for saying, "Gee,
I had no idea . . .".
