Coastal Communities & Ecosystems

Survey results show how states are addressing sea level rise

Across the nation, state and local officials are assessing programs and policies to address the clear consequences of climate change. For coastal communities, a significant concern is the documented acceleration of sea level rise globally, and the resulting erosion and inundation of coastal resources and communities. The Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) notes that, “because global warming may result in a substantial sea level rise with serious adverse effects in the coastal zone, coastal states must anticipate and plan for such an occurrence.” As various state and local governments confront these issues, there is a genuine need to identify and share the approaches and strategies that emerge.

Therefore the CZMA further acknowledges this challenge to “minimize the loss of life and property caused by improper development in flood-prone, storm surge, geological hazard, and erosion-prone areas and in areas likely to be affected by or vulnerable to sea level rise, land subsidence, and saltwater intrusion, and by the destruction of natural protective features such as beaches, dunes, wetlands, and barrier islands.”   

With this goal in mind, the R.I. Coastal Resources Management Council requested assistance to review these issues locally. In efforts to provide input to the policy development process, the Rhode Island Sea Grant College Program and Coastal Resources Center at the University of Rhode Island collaborated with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (NOAA/OCRM), Coastal Program Division, to conduct a desktop review of state Coastal Programs that have incorporated or are in the process of incorporating anticipated sea level rise into planning and regulatory processes or are engaging in initiatives regarding sea level rise, climate change, or other relevant hazards.

That review has been compiled into the report Summary of Coastal Program Initiatives That Address Sea Level Rise as a Result of Global Climate Change, by Pamela Rubinoff, Nathan D. Vinhateiro, and Christopher Piecuch, is available on-line at seagrant.gso.uri.edu/ccd/haz.html.

Aquidneck Island Special Area Management Plan update

Melville - Weaver Cove Growth Center

The R.I. Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC) held a public presentation session about the Aquidneck Island Special Area Management Plan (SAMP). The SAMP, once adopted into state and local law, will address water quality, habitat protection, public access, hazard mitigation and economic investment strategies for, initially, the western portion of the island.

The public meeting was held on February 21 at Middletown Town Hall and included an overview of the SAMP project, a presentation by University of Rhode Island landscape architecture students regarding three east-west trail scenarios for the island, and an update by Numi Mitchell, biologist, about her Aquidneck Island Coyote Management Study.

For more information about the meeting or the SAMP, visit seagrant.gso.uri.edu/ccd/aisamp/.