Environmental Change Has Made Sea Shells Disappear from Beaches

In the 1960's and before that time, in New York City and the surrounding areas, folks went to the beaches along the Atlantic Ocean to spend a day in the water and the sand. Beaches like Orchard Beach, Jones Beach, Riis Beach and Rye Playland were popular spots and they still are today!

Picnics packed in bags and baskets, juices, sodas, fruit, chicken and sandwiches were packed into the trunks of cars. Back then New York water was considered the best drinking water in the world, we did not have to buy water. In addition beach chairs and beach umbrellas were brought with blankets to lay in the sand and towels to dry off with. The car was a popular mode of travel for vacations and a one day vacation on the beach was a popular thing. Folks traveled in groups down the highways meeting in the large packed parking lots at the designated beach of choice.

Aunts, uncles cousins, neighbors and friends had a sort of reunion at the beach. Groups had to arrive early to get a good spot. Those who had grown up around water would swim far out past the surf while just about everyone else splashed in the waves closer to the shore. One game many still participate in was building castles out of sand strong enough and far enough to withstand the waves. Another favorite was burying each other in the sand. Tossing beach balls was fun and Frisbees were new.

The best thing however that everyone did was to collect sea shells. All along the beach were white half clam shells of various sizes. Children and adults alike collected and compared found shells. Some were broken while others were whole. Perhaps the shell was particularly pretty or shiny! Besides the clam shells, small rocks, tiny conch like shells and blue mussel shells could be found.

Every year my siblings and I brought home loads of shells and piles of sand in our clothing. While the sand was preferred to have been left at the beach and was something to be gotten rid of, the shells were precious and decorative and kept for as long as possible. There were so many over the years that my mother was able to decorate her garden with them.

I spent a bit of time on the West Coast. There, the water on the Pacific was blue while the Atlantic had appeared to have had green water. The shells on the west coast only existed in stores where they could be purchased for a price. They were not lining the beach and the water was suspected of having caused leukemia suffered by the life guards along the Pacific Coast beaches.

In the late 1970's and early1980's upon return to the beaches of past along the Atlantic there was a new and unexpected change. There were no more white clam like sea shells. There were only blue mussel shells and they were mostly broken. The big white clam shells seemed to have never existed there and they were no where to be found. Passersby's of my old home had taken to stealing the shells out of the front yard. These shells were now a scarcity and could no longer be found at all at the local beaches. The only thing floating in on the beaches was garbage and trash that resulted in closing various beaches down from time to time depending on the flow.

Where had all of the seashells on the East Coast gone? Why were they no longer abundant or in existence? An obvious global change had taken place. Later in the same decade a return to the West Coast found that the entire beach had disappeared. The coast line was several hundred feet closer inland and was actually in what used to be a parking lot.

I have not returned to either coast lately but I know I would find some drastic change when I do. The environment has changed worldwide. In the 1960's folks tried to bring attention to protecting our resources with Earth Day. Today the new call is to "Go Green" meaning to be more aware and careful about using our resources. Global warming and the Green House Effect were not believed at first but are now actual facts. Awareness might be late but better than not to care at all.