HONOLULU (AP) – As the sun rises over the Pacific Ocean, Waimanalo Bay’s powdery white coral sand glows in the morning light. A few people lounge in the sand as a fisherman casts his line into the turquoise water.
On Thursday, Waimanalo Bay Beach Park was named the top beach on an annual top 10 list of U.S. beaches compiled by a coastal science professor known as Dr. Beach.
Professor Stephen Leatherman of Florida International University compiles the popular list of best public beaches in the United States using 50 criteria, including best sand and water quality, environmental management and amenities.
Waimanalo Bay Beach Park beat out Barefoot Beach in Florida as the top pick for 2015, according to Dr. Beach. In recent years Leatherman has given extra points to beaches that have good safety records and no-smoking rules.
“Cigarette butts are the number one form of litter on beaches – plastics in terms of volume but in terms of numbers it’s cigarette butts – so I’m starting to give beaches extra credit for no smoking,” Leatherman said in a telephone interview Monday.