INCREASING THE RESILIENCY OF MAINE'S COASTAL COMMUNITIES THROUGH THE COASTAL HAZARD RESILIENCY TOOLS PROJECT: SUCCESSES, OBSTACLES, AND LESSONS LEARNED

For five years, the Maine Geological Survey (MGS) has partnered with other state agencies, regional planning organizations, and multiple coastal municipalities in southern and mid-coast Maine as part of the Coastal Hazard Resiliency Tools (CHRT) project. The goal of this project has been to increase the resiliency of municipalities to current coastal storms and the potential impacts of sea level rise through a “bottom up” process that includes scientific data development and translation to the local level through significant community engagement and education of local decision-makers. To date, the CHRT project has engaged ten individual communities in southern Maine, and was expanded recently to include communities in Lincoln County. Using GIS, MGS has used available Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data and a simplified inundation model to help communities conduct vulnerability assessments that identify infrastructure, buildings, and natural features vulnerable to existing storms and potential future sea level rise scenarios. This work has led to significant long-term engagement with local partners to identify applicable adaptation strategies that may be successfully implemented at the local level. This presentation will highlight some of the successes of the CHRT project, such as the formation of the Saco Bay Sea Level Adaptation Working Group, or SLAWG, in addition to some of the obstacles identified and lessons learned.