If beach-level gawkers aren't bad enough, nude sunbathers on Vancouver's Wreck Beach fear they may soon fall under the voyeuristic gaze of a proposed new residency tower on the University of British Columbia campus.

The Wreck Beach Preservation Society has been fighting the move. They held a protest against it on Saturday.

Judy Williams, head of the group, told CTV.ca on Tuesday, "students should be studying, not gazing down at nudes on Wreck Beach, not using webcams and selling us to porn sites."

But the University of British Columbia is saying the privacy of the protesters will be protected.

Paul Patterson, associate director of public affairs for the university, told CTV.ca he doesn't know why this issue is getting so much media attention, "although I guess it's a sexy story by definition."

While the society talks of towers, Patterson said there was to be one tower proposed to be 20 storeys high, with the rest being about five or six storeys tall.

In tests with balloons and blimps, the society said the tallest one will have to be reduced to 10 storeys to make it invisible from the beach.

About 300,000 people use Wreck Beach annually, which is on the west end of Point Grey.

The beach itself, at the base of a cliff, is a 7.8-kilometre hike.

The view from beach level is nothing but cliff and untouched forest, and that is one of its main attractions, said Williams.

"It's so beautiful down there," she said.

The area's natural beauty is not just part of Vancouver's legacy, it's part of Canada's, she said, adding, "I get very emotional about it."

While the university says bather privacy will be protected, Williams said the university only worries about visibility from the high water mark.

However, the lower the tide, the more beachfront. And the farther out people go, the more they'll be able to see the new development, she said.

The new development could have negative impacts on birds too, she said, noting the beach is part of the Pacific Migratory Fly-Way.

Patterson noted there are already large buildings on campus and birds "are not flying into them and hurting themselves."

A 127-foot-high tree used by eagles to train their young will also have to come down because if it fell, the top part could hit the proposed new structures, Williams said.

For the university's part, the creation of 2,000 desperately-needed housing spaces on campus is a good-news story, Patterson said.

For one thing, they will all be equipped with kitchens and will be suitable for married students.

UBC sits at the end of Point Grey on what are known as the University Endowment Lands.

A few years ago, a plan was announced to create "University Town," which is designed to make UBC less of a commuter campus and more of a community.

By 2021, it is envisioned that 18,000 people will live on campus.

Patterson said he didn't know whether this controversial development was officially part of University Town or not.