Montauk's most famous surf beach sits in front of a retreating glacial bluff — and outside the federal project line. The Army Corps has repeatedly declined to include Ditch Plains in FIMP, so when winter storms carved the dune in 2024, the rescue was a state one. Here's the record.
Rates are the USGS National Assessment of Shoreline Change (Open-File Report 2010-1118/1119, Hapke et al.). Unlike the barrier beaches, Ditch Plains is backed by a glacial headland bluff — so retreat here means the bluff toe is undercut, not just the dry beach narrowing. For the exact rate at a specific parcel, see the address certificate.
Is Ditch Plains eroding?
Yes — about 83% of USGS transects here erode long-term, averaging around −0.17 m/yr and reaching about −0.61 m/yr (−2.0 ft/yr) at the worst, with the backing bluff retreating behind the beach.
What is the Ditch Plains shoreline-change rate?
The USGS long-term rate averages about −0.17 m/yr and reaches roughly −0.61 m/yr (about −2.0 ft/yr) at the fastest transect.
Is Ditch Plains part of the Army Corps FIMP project?
No — USACE has repeatedly declined to include Ditch Plains in FIMP, saying it doesn't meet federal criteria, so after the 2024 storms New York State funded a separate dune-restoration effort instead.
What FEMA flood zone is Ditch Plains in?
The oceanfront is mapped Zone VE, the coastal high-hazard zone subject to breaking-wave action, in the FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer.
Ditch Plains is a glacial-headland beach, not an engineered barrier — and because it falls outside the federal benefit-cost criteria, it has never been part of the big Army Corps program that holds the beaches to its west. Its protection has been improvised, storm by storm.
This page is the Ditch Plains reach. The $99 Psammite certificate reads your exact address: the long-term erosion rate at your parcel, your storm-surge and FEMA exposure, the uncertainty band, and whether a licensed site review is warranted — built from the same federal record.