Beachcombing for sea glass is one of the most fun activities to do on the beach. Sea glass is a beautiful gem, and it would be exciting to collect a few.
There are beaches where you will find plenty of sea glass as you walk around, and others where you will hardly find any.
This is due to a number of reasons, such as beach popularity, wave actions, and the composition of the beach, among others.
What Is Sea Glass?
Sea glass pieces are glass gems that you will find on beaches, and they come in different shapes, sizes, textures, and colors.
They are formed from glass waste – bottles, jars, containers, that had been discarded into the sea. The broken glass is then refined and textured by waves and currents in the ocean to form the gems.
In essence, sea glass is a product of both man and nature. The pieces take many years to form, between several decades and a century, depending on the prevailing conditions.
A good sea glass beach is no longer easy to find because people don’t dispose of glass waste in the water anymore.
Beaches where you are most likely to find sea glass include those in the UK, Fort Bragg, California, Kauai Beach in Hawaii, and Vladivostok Beach in Russia.
Why Do Some Beaches Not Have Sea Glass?
There are several reasons why you might find very few sea glass pieces on a beach or none at all.
- For starters, it would be hard to find these gems on a beach that is barely inhabited as sea glass is majorly a product of human activity.
- Also, it would depend on the proximity of soft glass to the shore, such as beer and soda bottles. In some of these beaches, waste disposal methods are advanced and organized such that people don’t dump waste in the water anymore.
- Also, you should consider skipping the sandy beaches if you want to come across some sea glass.
The following are five factors, in more detail, as to why you may not find sea glass on a beach.
1. Beach Popularity
The number of people that frequent or live on a beach determines the amount of waste deposited into the ocean. Glass bottles, jars, and other glass containers form part of the waste.
Therefore, if there is not enough glass waste in the sea, sea glass will not form.
So, if there is zero to minimal human activity on a particular beach, it will be unlikely to spot sea glass while beach-combing.
2. The Type of Glass Dumped Into The Ocean
Sea glass is majorly a product of relatively soft glass that is easily broken down, frosted, and defined into the gems they turn out to be.
These are mostly beer bottles, soda bottles, and various tableware pieces.
The harder the glass, the more difficult the process of creating sea glass will be. Thus, when pieces of safety glass or tempered glass are disposed of into the sea, they will take a very long time to become sea glasses, if at all they do.
So, if a beach is located close to a manufacturing plant that produces this type of hard glass, you are unlikely to spot sea glass.
3. Efforts To Reduce Dumping of Waste Into The Oceans
Climate change has prompted environmental conservation all around the world, and this includes proper waste disposal.
For that reason, dumping waste in the ocean is prohibited for the sake of protecting aquatic life and maintaining the quality of water.
Without glass waste to transform into sea glass, the gem is becoming rarer and rarer as days go by.
Thus, you are unlikely to find sea glass on beaches where environmental conservation and proper waste dumping are prioritized.
4. The Water Does Not Have Adequate Wave Action
Glass waste requires ocean currents and waves to beat it, refine it, and frost it into sea glass.
More than that, the waves and currents are necessary to carry the sea glass into the ocean.
On that note, if the water does not have enough waves and currents, there will not be enough sea glass formation.
Also, there won’t be enough force to carry whatever sea glass is available onto the shore. Therefore, the chances of finding sea glass on such a beach will be minimal.
5. The Composition of The Beach
Geological factors also play a big role in determining whether you will find sea glass on a beach.
For instance, if the beach is too sandy, it will be a little difficult to spot sea glass.
Also, if the beach is located in a place that has high surf, the small pieces of glass deposited into the ocean will be washed away before they can become sea glass.
Final Words
Pieces of sea glass have such beautiful colors and are a favorite for jewelers.
The fact that they are also increasingly rare increases their value and demand. Looking for and finding beach glass is a fun activity.
However, you may not find any sea glass on some beaches for various reasons, as has been highlighted in this article.
