Background Information

New Jersey contains a very large coastline that is routinely caught in storms and erosions. To counteract the erosion problems that New Jersey faces, park services and coastal residents plant dune grass. Dune grass is a deep-rooted, narrow plant that grows in clumps. Its roots are strong and last long through storms but are fragile at the surface. Stepping on dune grass not only kills the plant but can also weaken a coastline.

The success of the dune grass is not found on the surface but actually below. The roots of dune grass are deep which allows for preservation of beaches even through rough surf. Early settlers of the eastern coast didn’t know this and thought of building huge houses on the beaches. They eventually saw the problem with this and unfortunately, put up huge seawalls. Seawalls undermine and erode sand causing beaches to actually disappear. People eventually saw how seawalls only worsened the problem and began to see that plants, bushes and other plantation actually worked the best. After seeing its success, dune grass was placed on all the beaches and does an excellent job of preserving New Jersey’s beaches.

The United States Coast Guard is a branch of homeland security that focuses on protecting the safety of people living on the coast. They have boats, ships and helicopters capable of capturing and doing harm to terrorists and intruders. Not only do they protect the waters but they also have various tests that take place in the waters. The Coast Guard places buoys in certain areas to get reading of temperature, depth, salinity and wind. They are a very sophisticated branch of homeland security and are capable of helping coastal residents very well.
Recently there have been many attempts at discovering and designing new ways to protect and ensure the lives of dune grass. Clean Ocean Action, National Park Services and biologists have all been testing various ways to save dunes. One very simple and obvious way to save dunes is by not letting things crush them; specifically humans. Dune Grass is not designed to withstand the force that a human provides on these plants. Creating a VEX Robot that is capable of safely maneuvering through the dunes without harming them is a crucial yet simple answer to the concerned public.