ASBPA’s Science & Technology Committee and the Technical Advisory Committee were busy in 2018: U.S. Coastal Research Program (USCRP) ASBPA’s Science Director serves as a member of the USCRP Virtual Program Office (VPO) coordinating a community of researchers from federal agencies, academia, and industry who have developed a sustained, coordinated national research program. Goals are…
Despite the fury Hurricane Florence unleashed along the coastline of the Carolinas, areas with wide sandy beaches and high dunes fared well in the face of an unprecedented onslaught of storm surge and waves. Although the coastline suffered significant erosion, restored beaches accomplished their design purpose of protecting upland properties and communities. While communities are…
On September 10, House and Senate released America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018, which includes 4 titles related to water infrastructure. The first title is, essentially, a water resources development act (WRDA) that includes a number of provisions ASBPA supports (the remaining titles address clean drinking water, hydropower, and stormwater infrastructure financing, none of which ASBPA has…
Call them what you want — living shorelines, natural infrastructure, green infrastructure, natural and nature-based features — interest is growing in looking at alternatives to traditional shoreline armoring and ways to more naturally mitigate shoreline erosion. More and more communities see that they derive multiple benefits from restoring natural infrastructure. Healthy coastal habitats reduce the…
As a record-setting hurricane season retreats from memory, what lessons do coastal communities need to hold on to as they prepare for future years? Building higher, stronger and further back always pays off. While there’s not much you can do in the face of a landfalling Category 4 hurricane, your best chances for coastal survival…
As the United States weathers our worst hurricane season in years, and communities in Texas, Florida, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Island and the Atlantic seaboard try to recover, ASBPA is working to ensure that beaches, dunes, wetlands and coastal resilience are included in whatever emergency funding bill Congress develops. Most of the destruction from Hurricanes…
Hurricanes Harvey and Irma were, and continue to be, life-changing events for millions of Americans. These coastal storms brought devastation far beyond waterfront homes, reminding us that the coastal flood zone can range miles inland. As communities throughout the impacted coastal zone begin to recover and rebuild, their focus should be on building back better…
While the near-daily DC dramas may provide entertainment to some and fund-raising fodder for others, we should not be distracted by these diversions into forgetting what Washington is really about: Running the federal government, funding its operations and moving forward on the priorities of the people who put them into office. In the case of…
As anyone within 50 miles of a storm-prone coast surely knows, June 1 is the start of the Atlantic hurricane season. But as we head further into July towards the heart of the season in August and September, chances that a storm might spin up in the warming waters increases. Depending on how recently a…
Much has been said about recent responses to the issue of climate change, so there’s no need to add to that conversation. However, coastal professionals and residents understand that, ultimately, sea level change and other consequences of a warming climate are not political realities, but scientific ones. More important, they are personal realities… and doing…