Massachusetts unveils new strategy to help coastal communities cope with climate change
BOSTON — Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey on Tuesday unveiled a new strategy that she said will help the state’s 78 coastal communities work together to better deal with the challenges posed by climate change.
Part of the ‘ResilientCoasts’ initiative is to group together different geographic regions that share similar landscape features and face similar climate risks, known as ‘coastal resilience districts’. Massachusetts has more than 1,500 miles (2,414 kilometers) of coastline that spans salt marshes, beaches, rocky shores, dunes, harbors and harbors, as well as residential and commercial areas.
The goal of the program is to help communities within each district create customized policies and strategies to address the impacts of climate change and pursue federal funds.
Other goals of the strategy announced Tuesday include creating nature-based solutions to coastal erosion – including flood protection – streamlining the permitting process, and ensuring that future resilience projects take into account the latest projected sea level rise.
“Climate change poses a very real threat to our coastal way of life, but it also presents us with a unique opportunity to build communities that are safer and more equitable,” Healey said.
Many of those living in the floodplains are also among the state’s most vulnerable.
Of the nearly 2.5 million people living in coastal communities in Massachusetts, about 55% live in areas with communities of color, low-income populations and where residents face language barriers, according to the government.
Massachusetts could see sea levels rise by as much as 0.8 meters by 2050 compared to 2008 if global emissions are not dramatically reduced, with both tidal and storm-related flooding expected to increase, the government said.
The initiative is the state’s latest effort to address the impacts of climate change, including strategies to move the state closer to its goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
Alison Bowden, interim state director of The Nature Conservancy, said Massachusetts must take action to protect habitats, coastlines and ecologically vital landscapes.
“We can make a significant difference in protecting our coastal areas from sea level rise and erosion,” Bowden said.
This increase can entail high costs.
According to Healey, by 2070 the average cost for coastal structures statewide could exceed $1 billion per year. The total value of structures on the state’s floodplains for a 100-year storm is approximately $55 billion, of which approximately $40 billion is residential, $12 billion industrial, and $2.5 billion commercial.