It hasn’t been mentioned here, but part of the problem with this massive waste of dollars is often caused by an additional waste of tax dollars used in dredging.
The state spends millions digging out river bottoms, like the Cape Fear, to maintain a shipping channel up to Wilmington and in the process creates an artifical river outflow.
If the river were to flow naturally the process renews the beaches by depositing sand on them. When the river is dredged and pointed straight into the ocean, that’s where the sand goes,.
So, waste of money in the rivers and inlets leads to more wasted money moving sand.