Resilience Implications Where Land and Water Meet

One of the regions that are most heavily impacted by changing climate is the place where land and water meet. With increasing water levels and risks from storm events, the need for resilient approaches that address the interaction of critical built infrastructure and ecosystems along shorelines has never been more important. Understanding the hazards and the potential impacts while incorporating design approaches that are adaptable to future changes is the challenge confronting these areas. Erosion, growing flood risks, and intense storms are damaging infrastructure and endangering coastal communities. Understanding and assessing these risks, working with nature and stakeholders to develop comprehensive solutions that consider physical risk reduction, ecology, and community together, is key to success. These solutions are increasingly multipurpose to gain the needed political and funding support. Resilience should be a key component of waterfront planning and infrastructure designs, new and rehabilitations. True resilience looks at the interaction with interconnected systems. While progress has been made, there are opportunities to do better developing holistic, innovative, and resilient solutions, especially at the interface of land and water.