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In the United States, the ownership of coastal beaches varies from state to state, and each coastal state's
response to the question of ownership has been developed through legislation and court cases. The dispute over beach ownership and access is complicated by, among other factors, the
categorization of beaches: the wet sand or tidelands, the dry sand beach from mean high water to the vegetation line, and the uplands that lie landward of the dunes. However, due to the law's
reliance on the public trust doctrine of English common law, it is generally recognized that the public owns the tidelands, though some coastal states have allowed private ownership to the
low-tide line.* For example, 90 percent of Maine's coastline is privately owned, while about 90 percent of Oregon's coast is public.* States like Maine have allowed private ownership all the way to the low-tide line.
In Texas, the wet beach is state-owned submerged land held in trust for the public by the General Land Office
(GLO), but the dry beach can be privately held land subject to public easement. The public has retained this easement—the right to use and enjoy the dry beach—by virtue of a tradition dating
back to European settlement, when the beach was actually used as a road. In the nineteenth century, for instance, a stagecoach line traveled the beaches of Galveston Island. Today Texas
beaches quite literally continue to be used as roads; not only are vehicles allowed to drive on many coastal beaches, but some local coastal governments maintain the beach surface for that
purpose. Since 1959, with the enactment of the Texas Open Beaches Act, the legislature has guaranteed the public's right of access and use of Texas beaches that are accessible by
public road or public ferry.
Of the 367 miles of Texas coastal beaches, 293 miles are open for public use. Of these, 173 miles are
considered accessible to the public. In this context, "accessible" is defined by state law as "accessible by driving along the shore or by walking no more than one mile from a point that can
be reached by a two-wheel-drive vehicle."* Under rules developed by the GLO, local governments have the option of limiting vehicular traffic on beaches as long as adequate off-beach parking is developed. Local governments also have primary responsibility for developing and maintaining public entrances to beaches. To ensure a minimum of public entrances, the GLO, at the direction of the state legislature, created beach access rules. All coastal communities were required to develop access plans based on these rules by August 1993 for approval by the GLO. Resource planners are aware that increased beach access may also increase the public use of beaches, which in turn might increase the amount of beach trash and also threaten dunes, coastal vegetation, and other coastal resources.
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