Stabilizing the Edge - Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic Shorescapes Facing Sea-Level Rise

A conference presentation from the Georgia Water Resources Conference examines coastal management strategies and legal frameworks for addressing sea-level rise along the Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic shorelines. Explore findings from an NSF-funded interdisciplinary research project that analyzes ocean-facing and estuarine protection laws from Florida to Delaware. Learn about the distinctions between shoreline management approaches, including how jurisdictional lines are established using erosion rates for ocean-facing shores versus pre-determined buffer widths for estuarine areas. Discover why current trends toward "freezing" oceanward jurisdictional baselines may hinder adaptive responses to rising sea levels and increased flooding. Examine how armored shorelines receive less regulatory scrutiny than nature-based living shorelines, despite the latter's superior adaptability. Understand the challenges of balancing uniformity in shore protection policies with the need for more dynamic, science-based approaches that incorporate factors like shoreline characteristics, sea-level rise projections, marsh migration, and demographics to better protect habitat, property, and human life in coastal areas.