CoPe Conference: Evaluating Land Use Tradeoffs Due to Sea Level Rise in the Chesapeake Bay: Hampton, Va - June 2020/ Salisbury, MD - October 2020

University Of Maryland Center For Environmental Sciences, Cambridge MD

Investigators

Abstract

The Chesapeake Bay (CB) coastal region has one of the highest rates of sea level rise in the United States. Homes, ecosystems, and millions of dollars of critical infrastructure are increasingly at risk of erosion,and various types of flooding. In order for CB communities to plan for the future, members must understand their local rates of sea level rise (RSLR) and the factors contributing to these local variations. A significant contributor to differences in RSLR is that land surrounding the CB is sinking (i.e. vertical land motion (VLM)) at different rates, but the causes behind these rates are not easily measured or widely understood. Scientists, town planners, and land managers must discuss the current science of VLM, how to monitor its rates across the CB, and possible mitigation strategies. Furthermore, scientists and a wide range of community stakeholders, including those in underrepresented rural areas, should understand how RSLR will have multiple impacts on residential communities, wetlands, and agriculture. They each have their own priorities that will influence what management options are most ecologically, socially, and economically desirable or feasible. Presenting the latest science on the causes of RSLR, anticipated land use changes, and the cost-effectiveness of different management options will empower the CB region and others facing similar threats from RSLR. The team will convene two workshops: 1) Vertical Land Motion in the Chesapeake Bay, and 2) Evaluating Land Use Tradeoffs in the Chesapeake Bay. Workshop 1 will improve scientific understanding of the physical drivers of VLM rates in the CB and identify areas where understanding VLM rates may be most critical for land use planning. Workshop 2 will focus on how to effectively communicate VLM science and how rates of RSLR will cause land use changes and affect coastal communities. The goals of the workshops are to: 1) understand and disseminate the state of the science on VLM; 2) improve stakeholder understanding of accelerated RSLR; 3) learn how RSLR may change current land use practices, and 4)engage stakeholders throughout the workshop process. The workshop schedules involve: a) pre-workshop planning; b) holding workshop 1 c) workshop 1 synthesis and outcomes analysis; d) holding workshop 2; and e) a synthesis report and information distribution. Participants will include researchers, land conservationists, agricultural specialists, town planners, and community members, especially from underserved communities. At the end of these workshops there will be better information for use in community decision-making. Workshop organizers will assess how priorities differ among stakeholders and what factors most influence stakeholders' actions, which will guide selection of the research, tools, and outreach communities need to effectively plan for sea level rise. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.