The Law of the Beach

Right now, New York law defines oceanfront property lines according to a concept called "mean high tide". Legally, mean high tide refers to an imaginary plane or vertical datum relative to mean sea level (which itself is another imaginary plane).

According to current judicial interpretation, mean high tide is determined by interpolation between measurements taken at government tidal stations. For all of Long Island, property lines are based on the tidal measurements taken in New York Harbor at the southernmost tip of Manhattan, and at another tidal station in Montauk Harbor. Measurements are collected continuously and averaged according to a specific formula over a 19-year period to determine mean high tide at each tide station location. On the south shore of Long Island, the local mean high tide level is a custom-calculated level falling somewhere between the two.

It is obvious that determining the vertical measure of mean high tide is not within the ordinary capability of beachgoers. But that is only a small part of a much larger legal problem. To determine the separation between private property, where access is controlled by the owner, and public property that all can enjoy, it is necessary to translate the vertical plane of mean high tide into a horizontal property limit. In other words, it is necessary to estimate where the level of mean high tide would intersect with the sandy beach. Such a determination requires advanced surveying equipment and technical skill. Even the most experienced professional surveyors will typically disagree on the exact determination of oceanfront property lines.

It is beyond question that members of the public cannot be expected to know, or have any practical means of determining where an oceanfront boundary lies. Any such determination, even if possible, would take a significant amount of time. Which brings us to the greatest problem of all. Even if the most expert surveyors using the finest equipment could agree on the location of an oceanfront boundary at a point in time, it would soon change. Typically in a matter of hours, and certainly in a matter of days, a beachfront property lines will move significantly.

The upshot is this. The public has no idea what rights we have to use the beach in front of privately owned oceanfront properties, and no practical means of finding out. Mean high tide does not work as a legal standard. New York's beachfront property laws are antiquated, broken, unworkable. They are an invitation to disputes and conflicts that only a lawyer could love.

That doesn't have to be the case. Around the world, in other legal systems, there are better solutions. Right here in the U.S., there are good examples to consider. Take Hawaii or Oregon, for example. Their state laws allow public access to the ocean beach below the vegetation line. Nearby Rhode Island recently enacted laws defining the wrack line as the property limit.

At BeachRight, we want to engage the public, civic organizations, lawmakers and officials in an effort to improve our laws. Everyone can see the value of preserving New York's spectacular beaches. At BeachRight, we want to ensure that the enjoyment of our beaches is shared by the public. Forever.