The Great Marsh Coastal Adaptation Plan details an adaptation planning effort lead by the National Wildlife Federation (in partnership with the Ipswich River Watershed Association) that focused on six vulnerable coastal communities in northeastern Massachusetts (Salisbury, Newbury, Newburyport, Essex, Ipswich, and Rowley). This report assesses regional and town-specific vulnerabilities to current and future coastal threats and identifies near and long-term ecosystem-oriented strategies that reduce risk and increase target resiliency. Strategies include natural and nature-based solutions, building retrofits, policy measures, and outreach and education initiatives—all of which are operationally feasible and can be implemented in the near to moderate term. Shovel-ready projects have been identified and vetted and relevant municipal policy measures have been identified that incentivize climate-smart development and/or prohibit development in hazard-prone locations. In addition, this plan provides key recommendations for advancing the implementation of nature-based adaptation strategies in the Great Marsh Region. This report was developed by the National Wildlife Federation, in partnership with the Ipswich River Watershed Association, with financial support from the U.S. Department of the Interior, administered by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Hurricane Sandy Coastal Resiliency Competitive Grant Program, and from the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management's Coastal Community Resilience Grant Program.
Town-specific vulnerability assessments and adaptation strategies can be accessed directly via links provided in the table of contents.
Nature-based adaptation strategies in the Great Marsh region
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