Documentary About Coastal Development in New Jersey To Be Shown in Rumson

August 27th, 2014 by Steve Nelson

The documentary film Shored Up, which examines the collision between coastal development and severe weather in New Jersey and North Carolina, will be shown Sept. 20 at a special screening in Rumson. New Jersey Future, which is working with Sea Bright and Highlands on long-term recovery planning after Hurricane Sandy, is sponsoring the screening.

At the conclusion of the film there will be a panel discussion and question-and-answer session featuring the film’s director and several local coastal and environmental scientists.

The screening begins at 7:00 pm at Holy Cross School, 40 Rumson Rd. in Rumson. Doors open at 6:30 pm. Through New Jersey Future’s sponsorship of the event, admission is free. “This film does an excellent job of examining all sides of the issues surrounding the best way to develop and redevelop our shoreline,” said Steve Nelson, the local recovery planning manager from New Jersey Future who is working in Sea Bright and Highlands. “We hope as many community members as possible will come to see it, and will engage in the conversation afterward. While there are no easy answers to the questions raised by the film, it’s important that the entire community be involved in the dialogue, and we want this film to provide a well-informed start to the conversation.” “I made Shored Up to explore what it means to live beside the beauty of the ocean where, as we saw with Hurricane Sandy, we are always just one storm away from catastrophe,” said the film’s director, Ben Kalina. “In the wake of the storm, I believe that only by gaining a greater understanding of the coastal environment can we develop effective recovery strategies that will meet the diverse, long-term needs of each community.” Besides Kalina, panelists include Cindy Zipf, executive director of Clean Ocean Action; Tim Dillingham, executive director of the American Littoral Society; and Norbert Psuty, professor (emeritus) of coastal geomorphology at the Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences at Rutgers University. Dillingham and Psuty are both featured in the film. The panel will be moderated by Tony MacDonald, director of the Urban Coast Institute at Monmouth University. Audience members will have the opportunity to ask questions. What: Screening of the documentary film Shored Up When: Saturday, Sept. 20, 2014, 7:00 – 9:00 pm Where: Holy Cross School, 40 Rumson Rd., Rumson Admission: Free