Community Resilency Planning in the Great Marsh. From the Great Marsh Symposium, Nov 13, 2014.

1. Chris Hilke
Climate Adaptation Program
National Wildlife Federation
Community Resiliency Planning in the Great Marsh

2. NWF & Coastal Adaptation Planning
• Chesapeake Bay
• Puget Sound
• Great Lakes
• Gulf Coast States
Where What
• Vulnerability Assessments
• Adaptation Strategy Identification
• Ecosystem Adaptation
• Community Planning
September 2014
Best Practices for Climate Change Adaptation:
Spotlight on Michigan Coastal Wetlands

3. Engaging in the Great Marsh
NWF initiated screening-level habitat vulnerability assessment at Parker River National Wildlife Refuge (2012)
Workshop Outcomes
•Long history of restoration and conservation activity
•Significant current climate-driven impacts
•Off-refuge engagement key component to sustainable management

4. Community Engagement – Essex, MA
NWF – Town of Essex MOU (2013)
Deliverables
•Inventory of vulnerable community assets
•Comprehensive public engagement process
•Adaptation strategy implementation roadmap
Products
•Town adaptation Task Force
•Vulnerability workshop
•Vulnerability discussion document
•Adaptation strategy identification workshop
•Adaptation “Action” Report
•Planning to Implementation workshop

5. Ecological Restoration and Enhancement
1.Saltmarsh & sub-aquatic vegetation restoration
2.Dune nourishment & revegetation
Assessment and Modeling
3.Hydrologic barriers assessment & prioritization
4.Hydrodynamic sediment transport & salinity modeling
5.Community Resiliency Planning
DOI Hurricane Sandy Resiliency Grants Program
“Community Risk Reduction through Comprehensive Community Resiliency Enhancement for the Great Marsh Ecosystem”
Goal: Projects that work together to comprehensively reduce risk to coastal communities and enhance the resiliency and adaptive capacity of the ecological systems those communities depend upon.

7. Community Resiliency Planning
Great Marsh Target Communities
•Essex
•Salisbury
•Rowley
•Ipswich
•Newbury
•Newburyport
NWF approach to community planning developed over time & experience
•Bottom up
•Community-specific
•Facilitated
•Comprehensive (gray/green infrastructure)

8. Community Resiliency Planning Approach

9. Community Resiliency Planning
Model Process
1.Community Planning Task Force
2.Identify target assets
3.Assess target vulnerabilities
4.Develop adaptation strategies
5.Categorize & prioritize
6.Initiate implementation

10. Coastal Community Adaptation Plan
•Outlines projected change across time/emission scenarios
•Summarizes vulnerabilities of community assets
•Identifies ecosystem-oriented adaptation strategies that reduce risk and increase resiliency
•Categorizes/prioritizes strategies based on feasibility, cost, implementation time
•Provides an implementation “roadmap” that identifies specific delivery mechanisms
Community Resiliency Planning
Outcome:

11. Community Resiliency Planning
Coordinating Efforts – Expanding Analysis
1.Leveraging expertise - Horsley Witten Group Coastal Resource Management, Community Planning
2.COAST (Coastal Adaptation to Sea Level Rise Tool) - Catalysis & EPA Strategy cost-benefit analysis
3.MAST (Marsh Adaptation Strategy Tool) - Catalysis & EPA Allocating ecosystem service values
4.Socioeconomic climate vulnerability assessment - USGS

12. Thank You! Great Marsh Restoration Partnership