Sen. Victoria Gu gives her review on the recently ended General Assembly session

Highlights from a productive session 

By Victoria Gu

Dear Friends and Neighbors,  We’ve finished another legislative session! After many nights of long committee hearings, bill sponsors and committee chairs work on their bill edits, and June is when bills can be approved for votes in committee and then gain final passage in the House & Senate.  New Leadership: In the past month the RI House of Representatives also elevated Majority Leader Blazejewski to the position of House Speaker and Majority Whip Katie Kazarian to the position of House Whip. Congratulations to them and the outgoing Speaker Joseph Shekarchi for their years of service.

Bills I Passed

Shoreline Access Disclosure for Oceanfront Property Rentals: The House & Senate passed my bill S-2734A to help make sure renters and short-term rental guests understand Rhode Island’s shoreline access rights. Part of the motivation for this bill came from seeing some short-term rental listings advertise a “private beach,” even though Rhode Island law protects public shoreline access up to 10 feet above the recognizable high tide line. This bill helps make sure visitors and tenants get clear information about those rights before they stay at an oceanfront property.  Food is Medicine: The General Assembly has passed my Food as Medicine bill, which creates a task force to design a Medicaid pilot program that uses medically tailored meals or other nutritional supports  to improve the health of patients with chronic, diet-related conditions.  Food insecurity is strongly linked to many of the most costly preventable chronic diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and obesity, which drive enormous health care spending.  Medicaid accounts for about one-third of our state budget and is growing at an estimated 6% per year. Our budget will have a growing deficit unless we look at evidence-based programs like food as medicine. 60 Days Advance Notice of Home Insurance Non-Renewals: Insurance companies are being a lot more selective about the location and the condition of the houses they insure, declining to cover homes in coastal areas or with older roofs or water heaters. The bill that Rep. Azzinaro and I passed requiring 60 days’ advance notice will help homeowners find alternative insurance coverage and find tradespeople if they need to fix something at their house in order to continue insurance coverage.

Spotlight: Youth Mental Health

988 on Student & Staff Ids: Last week the General Assembly passed a bill Rep Earl Read & I sponsored to put suicide prevention and substance use crisis hotline numbers directly on student and school staff ID cards. At a time when young people are facing growing mental health challenges, we need to promote awareness of resources like 988. The General Assembly also passed a youth crisis response service bill that codifies a successful pilot program into law. The program helps kids in crisis by getting them fast, specialized care with behavioral health clinicians (avoiding unnecessary emergency room visits) and connecting families to ongoing support. Thank you to constituents who wrote to me about the importance of funding 988: This year, the Senate also advanced a separate bill by Senator Melissa Murray to protect the long-term funding of Rhode Island's 988 crisis line and BH Link services. More than 90% of 988 calls are resolved through phone support alone, connecting people with trained counselors before a crisis escalates. The bill stalled in the House, but we hope to pass it next year. More info here

Looking ahead: Vote for the Green Bond this Nov & Op-Ed on Managed Retreat

We got an extra $5 million for climate resiliency in the Green Bond which will be on the ballot in November! Annually, each town can apply for grants from this pool of funding to strengthen their infrastructure. One example: Westerly received funding for a flood wall around a pump station for the wastewater treatment plant.  Managed Retreat: These photos I took in South Kingstown show how shoreline armoring—like rock walls and elevated structures—disrupt the dynamic beach ecosystem and make it harder for people to walk along the beach. As sea levels rise and more coastal property owners build hard structures to protect against erosion, the public part of the beach gets narrower, and in these pictures, it has become impossible to pass along the shoreline. That's why we need to plan ahead before the next major storm. Instead of repeatedly rebuilding in areas that face increasing flood and erosion risks, towns can identify safer places for homes and infrastructure over the long term. Read more about our work to help Rhode Island communities prepare for rising seas and protect public access to our shoreline:  https://www.providencejournal.com/story/opinion/columns/2026/04/18/rhode-islands-managed-retreat-plan-for-rising-seas-opinion/89628806007/

Next rail advocates meeting: June 22nd 6pm @ Westerly Library

Budget Highlights

62-65 year old early retirees will now get the same exemptions from Social Security tax as people 65 and older. Seniors still must have incomes under $107,000 for single filers and $133,750 for married filers in tax year 2025, to qualify. Child Tax Credit - see this press release Rural Health Transformation Grant - RI received over $150 million in the first year of this federal program and will use it to implement innovative programs like Community Paramedicine - see this website for more information. Stay tuned for more healthcare highlights and impacts of HR1 on our healthcare system

Read the full budget press release

Senate Highlights

Labor Protections: We passed many noteworthy bills like S-2921 to give domestic workers the same protections under the Fair Employment Practices Act (FEPA) as other Rhode Island workers. Immigration bills: see this press release and another for protecting constitutional rights Education Funding Formula: only minor changes this year by increasing the “student success factor” - which is an additional amount of funding for each low-income student - from 40% to 43%. We will need to monitor the new Senate commission to study the funding formula, specifically the one suggested by the Blue Ribbon Commission Status of CRMC reform bill: The bill that passed last year required the Governor to appoint members with expertise in coastal matters. There are some new members that the Senate confirmed this year with expertise with civil engineering, coastal wetlands, law, etc. but it remains to be seen whether the political dynamic will change and I still support the overall reform that would restructure CRMC so it’s similar to DEM, with a staff and director making the decisions instead of a politically appointed all-volunteer council. Status of Bottle Deposit & Recycling bills: The bill that passed last year began the first stage which is a needs-assessment to look at our recycling system as a whole. That is still in progress

Great new local website breaks great news about a new Charlestown Town Council candidate

Eat your heart out, CCA

By Will Collette

This is Cynthia's Corgi, Maris, who WON'T
be on the campaign trail

Alex Nunes, former South County bureau chief for Rhode Island public radio, left the station after Donald Trump wiped out federal funding for public broadcasting. I was worried that meant an end to his outstanding coverage of local coastal issues such as the fake fire district ripoff and beach access.

Fortunately, Alex won the post of Executive Editor for the Westerly Sun and is working hard to revitalize that local institution. But having way more energy than me, he has also set up a side gig.

Working with Sun columnist Nancy Burns-Fusaro, there’s a new media source called the South County Star where Alex is continuing to work on the stories that made him a must-read/hear source on The Public’s Radio. Call the Star another must-read source.

He just broke the story that another fine local journalist, Cynthia Drummond, will be running as a Democrat for a seat on the Charlestown Town Council. She will not seek endorsement from either the CCA or Charlestown Residents United (CRU) but WILL seek the support of the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee.

In the 25 years since Cathy and I returned to Rhode Island to live in Charlestown, we’ve enjoyed Cynthia’s work. Charlestown was lucky to have her as its Westerly Sun specialist for many years. I loved her attention to detail, witty writing style and fairness. I was sorry to see her retire, though I still followed her freelance work for such publications as EcoRI.

Charlestown Town Council President Deb Carney told Alex Nunes she was “very excited” to run with Cynthia as both will be running as endorsed Democrats, elaborating further, “I know Cynthia going back to 2010. She’s very smart. She’s very scientific. She does her research.”

As does Deb.

Here's Cynthia's bio from her stint at the Rhode Island Current:

Cynthia Drummond began her journalism career as a television reporter in Canada. She holds a Master of Marine Affairs degree from the University of Rhode Island and worked for several years at The Westerly Sun, covering Hopkinton, Richmond, Charlestown and the Chariho Regional School District. In addition to writing for the Rhode Island Current, Cynthia covers the Town of Richmond for the Beaver River Valley Community Association.

Alex reported that she moved to the US in 1998 and became a US citizen.

One thing she won’t do as a candidate is use her beloved Corgi Maris as a political prop as so many others do. Maris is prominently featured in Cynthia’s Bluesky account and she seems like a natural campaigner.

Chinese researchers pick up climate research the US has abandoned

Scientists Just Confirmed What’s Driving Sea Level Rise And It’s Alarming

By Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Causes of global mean sea level rise since 1960. Credit: Zheng et al., Science Advances (2026)

Sea level rise is one of the most visible consequences of human-driven climate change. As the planet warms, oceans absorb heat and expand, while melting glaciers and giant ice sheets add increasing amounts of water to the seas. Scientists say the process is persistent, difficult to reverse, and likely to continue for centuries.

A new international study has now provided the clearest explanation yet for what has been driving global sea level rise over the past 60 years. The research also resolves a long-standing discrepancy that had left scientists unable to fully account for all observed ocean rise.

Sea Level Rise Is Accelerating Worldwide

The study, published in Science Advances and led by researchers in China, found that global sea levels have risen by an average of 2.06 millimeters per year since 1960. More concerning, the pace has accelerated sharply in recent decades, climbing to 3.94 millimeters per year between 2005 and 2023.

Researchers determined that ocean warming is the single largest contributor, responsible for 43% of total sea level rise since 1960. When seawater heats up, it expands and occupies more space, causing ocean levels to increase even without adding extra water.

Senate approves Sen. Gu’s shoreline access education bill

Local fake fire districts who block beach access also need "educating" 

The Senate today approved legislation from Sen. Victoria Gu to educate tenants and short-term rental guests about public shoreline access rights.

“This bill expands upon the work we’ve done to codify shoreline access and educate buyers of shoreline property about the public’s right to access the shore,” said Senator Gu (D-Dist. 38, Westerly, Charlestown, South Kingstown). 

“While a lot of people in Rhode Island are aware of the public’s right to access the shoreline, people coming in from other states to rent or book a short-term rental aren’t necessarily aware of them. This is an important consumer protection and education measure to ensure that people renting ocean front real estate understand the public’s right to access the shoreline.”

Senator Gu sponsored a new law in 2024 that requires similar disclosure to buyers of shoreline property. This bill (2026-S 2734A) would extend this disclosure to tenants of shoreline properties, requiring landlords to provide renters with written shoreline access disclosure before the start of tenancy.

The disclosure would include the public’s rights and privileges to the shore up to 10 feet above the recognizable high tide line, requires the landlord to disclose any known rights of way to the tenant and advise the tenant to contact CRMC to find out if any public rights of way or permits are tied to the property.

Scientists are reading Block Island’s past to protect its future

Maybe it will teach us more about coastal change

By Amber Neville

Two new URI studies will decode over a century of coastal change on one of New England’s most treasured islands, delivering planning tools and scientific guidance directly to the community, backed by more than $800,000 in combined Rhode Island Sea Grant funding and matching funds. (URI Photo / Rhode Island Sea Grant)

Every summer, the population of Block Island swells to over 15,000 as visitors arrive for its 17 miles of beaches, dramatic glacial bluffs, and quiet ponds. The island has always changed — its bluffs eroding, its shorelines shifting, its marshes responding to the rhythms of tide and season. But the pace of that change is accelerating, and the decisions the community makes in the coming years will shape what the island looks like for generations to come.

The University of Rhode Island is working alongside that community to make those decisions better informed. Two new research projects, supported by more than $800,000 in combined Rhode Island Sea Grant funding and matching funds from URI and Eastern Connecticut State University (ECSU), will produce the most detailed picture yet of how Block Island’s shoreline and salt marshes are changing and what is driving those changes.

Managed Retreat Can be an Opportunity to Start Fresh

Sooner or later, the ocean will win

By Rep. Terri Cortvriend and Sen. Victoria Gu / R.I. General Assembly

No matter how rich you are, you can't stop the ocean

In 2023, our state took a big step to enshrine Rhode Islanders’ right to the shoreline: up to 10 feet above the last high-tide line. But what happens as sea level rise pushes the high-tide line up to homeowners’ and businesses’ seawalls?

Our beaches and shoreline are fragile ecosystems that naturally migrate upland as sea levels rise. But as homeowners and businesses increasingly put up rock walls and fortify their property, the beach has nowhere to go. When that sandy beach disappears, there goes one of our greatest natural assets, and the tourism economy on which Rhode Island’s economy relies erodes along with it.

Bottom of Form

Even seawalls, however, are not a permanent defense for property in some places as sea levels rise and storm severity and frequency continue to grow. On our coast and inland, several neighborhoods — most recently some along the Pocasset River in Cranston and Johnston — in our state have experienced such severe and frequent flooding that they qualified for federal funding for buyouts. In those situations, both the government and the property owners agree that the dangers and costs of continuing to live in those areas are simply too high.

Planning to prevent disaster, however, is always safer and less costly than responding to it.

“Managed retreat” is a planned effort to identify disaster-prone areas and relocate homes, businesses, and infrastructure there to safer places before they are destroyed.

Managed retreat can often protect other areas nearby, since the removal of human-made structures can help reduce erosion and flooding, and the restored area becomes a natural place for water to go.

Charlestown Breachway, two other DEM campgrounds opening this weekend

In-Tents Fun: Three State Campgrounds Open April 10

Editor's Note: That's not my pun ☝. It's DEM's - Will Collette

South County Tourism

The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) announces that three state campgrounds will open for the season on Friday, April 10. The annual opening of Charlestown Breachway, Fishermen’s Memorial, and George Washington Memorial State Campgrounds aligns with spring school vacation and trout fishing season, offering families a chance to enjoy Rhode Island’s outdoors. East Beach State Campground will open Friday, May 22. Book your stay at a RI State Campground at riparks.ri.gov/campgrounds.  

Burlingame State Campground is expected to open later in May due to ongoing work to complete a modernization project for its showers and restrooms. As a result, the release of reservations for the 2026 camping season at Burlingame will be delayed. DEM appreciates campers’ patience as we enhance Burlingame with modern, sustainable, and accessible amenities. Please stay tuned for updates by visiting the project webpage at: https://riparks.ri.gov/campgrounds/burlingame-campground-new-shower-and-restroom-facilities-project.

CRMC Denies Westerly Couple’s Application to Redo Seawall

Stones unturned

By Rob Smith / ecoRI News staff

How many stones can you replace in a seawall before it becomes a new wall?

Five percent? Ten? What if the stones are almost twice the size?

That was the subject of debate between commissioners on the Coastal Resources Management Council and a waterfront property owner.

James and Cheryl Chrones own, via a family trust, the last house on Atlantic Avenue in Westerly before the street turns into sandy beach. Like many houses dotting Rhode Island’s shoreline, this one has a 400-foot revetment, a seawall that has existed in some form or another since 1938.

The water in front of the Atlantic Avenue home is designated as Type 1 waters by CRMC; it’s meant for conservation only, and shoreline-hardening structures like seawalls aren’t allowed. It’s why coastal regulators have gone back and forth with the Quidnessett Country Club in North Kingstown over its illegal seawall.

But there’s a catch: the Chrones’ seawall is grandfathered in because it predates the formation of CRMC by more than three decades. So, while state regulations say they can’t expand it or create a new wall, they are allowed to keep the current one and put in applications to maintain it.

Since 1993, the Chrones have put in seven other, separate CRMC applications for seawall maintenance, including an emergency permit following Superstorm Sandy to replace riprap and repair a concrete patio.

Hitting the beach again to improve public access for Rhode Islanders

Sen. Gu, Rep. Cortvriend introduce legislation to strengthen shoreline access

Photo by Will Collette

Rep. Terri Cortvriend and Sen. Victoria Gu have introduced a trio of bills to protect Rhode Islanders’ access to the shoreline.

“Our coasts, rivers, ponds and lakes are precious resources that make Rhode Island special,” said Senator Gu (D-Dist. 38, Westerly, Charlestown, South Kingstown). “These bills provide the tools necessary to preserve historic foot paths and rights of ways so that every Rhode Islander can enjoy them.”

The three bills would make it easier for both the Coastal Resources Management Council and municipalities to preserve traditional footpaths and shoreline rights of way and to educate tenants of shoreline properties about public shoreline access rights.

Yeah, snow's still on the ground but it's not too early to think about summer jobs

Work with DEM this Summer!

The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) is recruiting for critical summertime positions like lifeguards, park rangers, and other key staff to work at state beaches, parks, and campgrounds. 

If you like being outdoors and want to make a positive impact on your community and our environment, DEM has hundreds of seasonal employment opportunities across its divisions. 

Visit DEM's seasonal employment webpage and apply for a position that interests you!

"DEM relies on hiring a robust seasonal workforce each year to manage parks, beaches, and other facilities," said DEM Director Terry Gray. "Working outside at some of the state's best destinations, gaining professional development experience, and having the opportunity to work with people from around the world are just a few of the many perks of joining our team.”

Full-time lifeguard positions are available at all state swimming areas, including surf beaches such as Roger Wheeler and Misquamicut, non-surf beaches such as Goddard Memorial State Park, and freshwater beaches such as Burlingame Campground and Lincoln Woods State Park. Lifeguard pay ranges from $19.75 to $21.00 an hour based on experience and position level. Lifeguards hired by May 22, 2026, can receive a one-time, $500 sign-on bonus as well as a $500 retention bonus if specific requirements are met.

‘The Cigarette Surfboard’ documentary draws attention to dangers of beach litter

The film will make its Rhode Island premiere at URI on Jan. 28

Neil Nachbar 

One of the cigarette surfboards that was designed and
 made by Taylor Lane. (Photos courtesy of Ben Judkins)

During the International Coastal Cleanup in Rhode Island from September to November 2025, cigarette butts made up 17.8% of all trash collected. 

In all, 20,908 cigarette butts were picked up from Rhode Island’s beaches—making up the largest single category of trash items collected. 

The documentary “The Cigarette Surfboard,” which will make its Rhode Island premiere at URI’s Graduate School of Oceanography on Wednesday, Jan. 28 at 6:30 p.m. in Corless Auditorium on the Narragansett Bay Campus, draws attention to this environmental hazard.

The film screening is free and open to the public, but reservations are required.

R.I. has a rising tide of tiny trash on its beaches.

But it still doesn’t have a bottle bill.

By Nancy Lavin, Rhode Island Current

Cigarette butts strewn across the sand and plastic bottles bobbing in the waves are the most obvious targets of frustration about litter on Rhode Island beaches.

But the button-sized plastic and foam pieces less visible to the casual observer might be a more serious problem. More than 14,000 of these 2.5-or-smaller centimeter pieces were collected from state shorelines as part of 2025 volunteer-led efforts through the International Coastal Cleanup, according to a new report from Save the Bay. 

Tiny trash came in second to cigarette butts, which claimed the dubious honor of no. 1 trash item among the 15,561 pounds of trash collected from September to November 2025. “Other plastic waste” was the third most prevalent, followed by food waste, bottle caps and plastic beverage bottles and cans.

CRMC settles one beach access dispute in Westerly

Weekapaug fake fire district road blocks still unresolved.

By Rob Smith / ecoRI News staff

After more than 40 years since it was first given to the state for consideration, coastal regulators have decided to designate a shoreline access point at the end of Everett Avenue in Westerly a state right of way.

The matter had technically been before the Coastal Resources Management Council, the state agency that oversees coastal access, since the late 1970s. According to a report and recommendation authored by CRMC counsel Anthony DeSisto, the agency’s right of way subcommittee held hearings in the fall and winter of 1978 and early 1979.

“The town has made representations that it’s a public street, it’s in the harbor management plan as a public right of way to the shore,” DeSisto said. “You have your dedication and acceptance as subcommittee members heard, the two elements indicating it’s a public right of way.”

During the hearings, the town and members of the public indicated the access point was used as a public right of way (ROW) by local residents, but the full council voted in 1980 to put its designation process on hold to allow abutters opposing the designation process to provide evidence to the contrary. That evidence never materialized, and the ROW issue lay dormant until brought to CRMC’s attention by a town solicitor in Westerly in February.

Rising seas and human pressures are rapidly shrinking the world’s beaches and destabilizing the ecosystems that depend on them.

Scientists warn half the world’s beaches could disappear

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo

Photo by Will Collette

Coastlines around the planet are being steadily "crushed" as climate-driven sea level rise combines with expanding development in coastal zones. This ongoing process damages the diverse life that depends on sandy environments, disrupts local economies that rely on fishing and tourism, and leaves coastal cities more exposed to encroaching waters.

The concern was raised by Uruguayan marine scientist Omar Defeo, a professor at Uruguay's University of the Republic (UdelaR), during the opening sessions of the FAPESP Day Uruguay symposium, which began on November 13 in Montevideo.

"Almost half of the beaches will disappear by the end of the century. We in Uruguay, Brazil, and Argentina share these resources. Therefore, we must work in partnership with Brazilian scientists to manage and conserve coastal ecosystems," Defeo said.

URI Dec. 3 program: Building climate resilience ‘From the Ground Up’

Jainey Bavishi will explore how local leadership and civic collaboration are reshaping climate action

Peter J. Hanlon

Costly repairs to the Charlestown Breachway are
an example of the price of climate change.
Photo by Will Collette

Jainey Bavishi, former deputy administrator of NOAA and former director of New York City’s Office of Climate Resiliency, will discuss “From the Ground Up: Communities Leading the Next Chapter of Climate Resilience” for the Charles and Marie Fish Lecture hosted by the URI Graduate School of Oceanography. 

The event, scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 3 at 6 p.m., will be presented in-person at the URI Narragansett Bay Campus, Corless Auditorium, 215 South Ferry Road in Narragansett. The lecture is free and open to the public, but registration is requested.

As climate impacts accelerate and uncertainty grows, communities across the country are redefining what it means to be resilient. In a fireside chat, Bavishi will explore how equity, local leadership and civic collaboration form the backbone of effective climate action, even as traditional systems face strain. 

Battle Over Westerly Beach Access Rages On Before CRMC

Fake fire district fights to restrict public beach access

By Rob Smith / ecoRI News staff

Access to Weekapaug Beach in Westerly, R.I., is guarded by a security officer from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. during the summer. The Weekapaug Fire District, at least according to a group of concerned residents, is also illegally blocking a shoreline right of way known as the Spring Avenue Extension. (Frank Carini/ecoRI News)

EDITOR'S NOTE: The Weekapaug Fire District is actually just a homeowners' association not an fire-fighting entity. Ironically, the Fire District lost what little capacity it had when its own firehouse burned down in November 2017. They have a security force, as shown above, but no firefighters. Weekapaug is similar to Charlestown's two fake fire districts, Shady Harbor and Central Quonnie, who likewise lack the ability to fight fires but plenty of determination to keep outsiders off the beach.  - Will Collette

Observers hoping for a quick resolution to the Spring Avenue Extension coastal access point are sure to be disappointed.

The Coastal Resources Management Council’s right of way (ROW) subcommittee opened its first evidentiary hearing Nov. 4. It’s the first chance both sides have had to produce evidence that proves or disproves if the ROW is truly open to the public.

For two and a half hours — with a single 15-minute break — the subcommittee heard testimony from witnesses, including title attorney Joseph Priestly, as attorneys representing the town of Westerly tried to prove to council members using decades-old plat maps the public status of the ROW.

“It’s a public highway open for access by the public and will remain so until abandoned by the town of Westerly,” Priestly testified. “Assuming that it has not been, it remains a public highway.”

Priestly added he had seen no evidence indicating the town had abandoned the ROW, either formally or informally, but noted he had not specifically looked for evidence of abandonment either. He also testified to subcommittee members that he saw no maintenance obligation by Westerly in the land evidence records.

A key point of evidence for supporters of the right of way is a 1939 plat map that has the ROW labeled. Westerly solicitor William Conley said for the ROW to be accepted under common law jurisprudence was a plat map depicting the ROW, and proof that it was open to the public historically, which would count as the town “accepting” the ROW without formally adopting it.

After Rhode Island’s shoreline access law, what’s next?

"Fire Districts" use guards, and one guy pulls a gun to keep people off the beach

Kristen Curry 

CLICK HERE for the details

URI coastal law expert assessing Rhode Island's shoreline access law in the face of rising seas and eroding coastlines

These recent sunny days bring the last chances to access the Rhode Island coastline before chillier weather sets in, though that won’t keep Jesse Reiblich away. When he’s not in or around the water — as an avid surfer, diver, and sailor — the University of Rhode Island assistant professor is working on a project to assess how effective Rhode Island’s shoreline access policies are, in a project funded by the National Sea Grant Law Center.

An attorney who teaches in URI’s Department of Marine Affairs, Professor Reiblich is writing and presenting on an important topic in the Ocean State: How can access to its shorelines be protected if the boundary is unclear?

Public access to the coast is threatened by a number of factors, including climate change, development, and conflicting coastal uses. Rhode Island’s Constitution guarantees certain coastal access privileges, but these rights have been undermined by judicial decisions that define the “shore” in limited ways.

In response to these discrepancies, Rhode Island’s legislature two years ago passed a new shoreline access law that enshrines the right of the public to access 10 feet above the mark of the last high tide. Professor Reiblich says this new law functions as a coastal resilience law. Now, he’s overseeing a research project aiming to evaluate the new law’s effectiveness, hoping to share research findings with the government agencies responsible for implementing the law.

Along with URI colleagues Melva Treviño Peña and Nathan Vinhateiro, the trio will assess whether the shoreline’s newly defined demarcation is sufficient for ensuring public coastal access and enhancing the public’s ability to access the shore. They hope to determine whether Rhode Island’s “shoreline” definition is legally sufficient or whether a new delineation would be legally preferable, for users, property owners, and regulators, as well as in the face of rising seas, eroding coastlines, and other effects of climate change.

Professor Reiblich believes that Rhode Island stands out within New England for protecting public ocean access: “Rhode Island’s effort to protect shoreline access in this new law and in its Constitution is among the strongest in the region,” he says.

Long-Term Repair to Charlestown Breachway Begins

Add another $1.4 million to Charlestown's out of pocket cost for climate change damage

Photo by Will Collette

The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM), the Town of Charlestown, and the Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC) announce that a long-term repair project of the Charlestown Breachway will begin in mid-October with the initial mobilization of equipment and materials. 

$8.4M in funding has been allocated for the project, with $5M contributed from a DEM request and allocated by the State through CRMC, $2M from CRMC for dredging, and $1.4M provided by the Town of Charlestown.

The project will restore the Breachways’ structural integrity, improve safe navigation, stabilize the coastline, and preserve essential water flow to maintain ecological balance, and water quality. Granite boulders will be added to raise the western wall, while dredging in Ninigret pond will remove storm-deposited sand to rebuild the beach and dunes. 

These long-term repairs will safeguard coastal infrastructure, the environment, and the community. Construction is expected to be completed by April 2026 ahead of the camping and beach seasons, with vegetation restoration completed by fall of 2026. Learn more about the project and check for updates at: https://charlestownri.gov/breachwayinformation.

As Huberto and Imelda pass by, be careful

Can CRMC Solve Mystery of Who Owns Westerly’s Spring Avenue Extension Right of Way?

Weekapaug fake fire district claims it can block beach access

By Rob Smith / ecoRI News staff

(Rob Smith/ecoRI News)

The public testimony presented in the Town Council chambers last week about a shoreline right of way sounded more like a science fiction novel than democracy in action.

For the first time coastal regulators were on hand to accept comment on the status, history, and local traditions surrounding what’s become the most contentious shoreline access point in recent memory: the Spring Avenue Extension right of way (ROW).

Supporters of shoreline access have identified the ROW as being once owned by the town as recently as the 1940s, with plenty of town residents recalling using the path to Quonachontaug Barrier Beach, also known as Weekapaug Beach, as recently as the 1970s. The town, these advocates allege, owns the right of way and never gave up its rights to the ROW.

On the other side of the issue is the Weekapaug Fire District, which restricts access and excludes the public from the beach during the busy summer session from mid-June to mid-September, as well as private property owners who claim the ROW was never used by the public, and who say the ROW is privately owned.

It’s a paradox, one that officials at the Coastal Resources Management Council aim to solve within the next year. The hearing last week, on a hot Monday evening, was the first in a series of public meetings aimed at soliciting the opinions and views of local residents and Rhode Islanders on how and when the right of way was used.