Investing in Natural and Nature-Based Infrastructure: Building Better Along Our Coasts

Sutton-Grier, Ariana; Gittman, Rachel; Arkema, Katie; Bennett, Richard; Benoit, Jeff; Blitch, Seth; Burks-Copes, Kelly; Colden, Allison; Dausman, Alyssa; DeAngelis, Bryan; Hughes, A.; Scyphers, Steven; Grabowski, Jonathan

doi:10.3390/su10020523

i

Investing in Natural and Nature-Based Infrastructure: Building Better Along Our Coasts

2018
By Sutton-Grier, Ariana ; Gittman, Rachel ; Arkema, Katie ; ...

Select the Download button to view the document

Please click the download button to view the document.

Details

Journal Title:

Sustainability
Personal Author:

Sutton-Grier, Ariana ; Gittman, Rachel ; Arkema, Katie ; Bennett, Richard ; Benoit, Jeff ; Blitch, Seth ; Burks-Copes, Kelly ; Colden, Allison ; Dausman, Alyssa ; DeAngelis, Bryan ; Hughes, A. ; Scyphers, Steven ; Grabowski, Jonathan
NOAA Program & Office:

NEFSC (Northeast Fisheries Science Center) ; NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Service)
Description:

Much of the United States’ critical infrastructure is either aging or requires significant repair, leaving U.S. communities and the economy vulnerable. Outdated and dilapidated infrastructure places coastal communities, in particular, at risk from the increasingly frequent and intense coastal storm events and rising sea levels. Therefore, investments in coastal infrastructure are urgently needed to ensure community safety and prosperity; however, these investments should not jeopardize the ecosystems and natural resources that underlie economic wealth and human well-being. Over the past 50 years, efforts have been made to integrate built infrastructure with natural landscape features, often termed “green” infrastructure, in order to sustain and restore valuable ecosystem functions and services. For example, significant advances have been made in implementing green infrastructure approaches for stormwater management, wastewater treatment, and drinking water conservation and delivery. However, the implementation of natural and nature-based infrastructure (NNBI) aimed at flood prevention and coastal erosion protection is lagging. There is an opportunity now, as the U.S. government reacts to the recent, unprecedented flooding and hurricane damage and considers greater infrastructure investments, to incorporate NNBI into coastal infrastructure projects. Doing so will increase resilience and provide critical services to local communities in a cost-effective manner and thereby help to sustain a growing economy.
Keywords:

Geography, Planning And Development Management, Monitoring, Policy And Law Renewable Energy, Sustainability And The Environment Geography, Planning And Development Management, Monitoring, Policy And Law Renewable Energy, Sustainability And The Environment Geography, Planning And Development Management, Monitoring, Policy And Law Renewable Energy, Sustainability And The Environment
Source:

Sustainability, 10(2), 523
DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3390/su10020523
ISSN:

2071-1050
Format:

PDF
Publisher:

MDPI AG
Document Type:

Journal Article
License:

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Rights Information:

CC BY
Compliance:

Library
Main Document Checksum:

urn:sha-512:b50c7771b81e5c9f22ad892071aecb51d132f89d8c55edba2d9c5a86189a87e3403077a06f32a1250370e073ab4f70c0f2e24fc4d970d1fe1c68c8fd0ee54fb7
Download URL:

https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/63413/noaa_63413_DS1.pdf
File Type:

[PDF - 12.35 MB ]

ON THIS PAGE

Details

The NOAA IR serves as an archival repository of NOAA-published products including scientific findings, journal articles, guidelines, recommendations, or other information authored or co-authored by NOAA or funded partners. As a repository, the NOAA IR retains documents in their original published format to ensure public access to scientific information.