Rehabilitating Boston’s Aging Seawalls for Sea Level Rise and Coastal Resiliency

This paper begins by exploring the current condition of Boston’s oldest waterfront infrastructure, namely, its granite blocks seawalls. The authors discuss the historic construction techniques and materials used to build the miles of granite block seawalls lining Boston Harbor. Having an understanding of the original construction, the authors use their experience with repairing and rehabilitating these seawalls by presenting various case studies and reports from past projects along the Boston waterfront. These examples illustrate the typical problems associated with these older seawalls. This paper also addresses the concerns associated with current localized coastal flooding along Boston’s waterfront, in addition to, potential problems arising from continued sea level rise and coastal inundation. Finally, this paper looks at examples of other coastal cities that have undergone extreme weather events and the studies and competitions that have been fueled by these events and what Boston might be able to learn from these disasters and solutions.