I think the sea connection is not the sand, but the fact that it is not drinkable. So he’s here, standing in a literal sea of water he shouldn’t drink, measuring out and sorting the pure filtered water he should drink. And why the careless attitude you may ask? Because it allows a bit of seawater in and it doesn’t kill you too have a bit of the profane world in your filtered experience. Temperantia in temperantia.