House Bill Would Improve Coastal Resilience

Statement by Shana Udvardy, Union of Concerned Scientists

Published Dec 10, 2019

WASHINGTON (December 10, 2019)— This evening, the U.S. House of Representatives will vote on, and is expected to pass, the Coastal and Great Lakes Communities Enhancement Act, H.R. 729, a package of ten bills. These bills would provide vital resources to increase coastal and ecosystem resilience, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS).

Below is a statement by Shana Udvardy, a climate resilience analyst with the Climate and Energy Program at UCS.

“The recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate and the Fourth National Climate Assessment’s "Our Coasts" chapter underscore that our coastal areas and communities are being affected by climate change and will continue to experience climate stressors, from storm surge and sea level rise to coastal erosion. These stressors will have social, economic and environmental impacts far beyond our coasts.

“The provisions in this bill offer real solutions to protect our coasts, and put people, science and natural ecosystems at the forefront.

“This bill is a recognition that coastal communities face dire risks from climate change, and that they shouldn’t have to confront those risks alone. We are grateful for this resounding bipartisan call for action to preserve the health, vitality and resilience of our nation’s coastal systems in the face of climate change. Given how our coasts have been battered time and again by the more frequent and intense extreme weather and climate change-related disasters, we urge the Senate to take up this bill and pass it without delay.”

Among the ten bills included in the legislation, key provisions include:

  • the “Digital Coast Act,” H.R.2189, which would establish a digital information platform to better integrate coastal data with decision-support tools, training and best practices that would improve local, state, regional, and federal coastal management efforts.
  • the “Coastal State Climate Preparedness Act”, H.R. 3541, which would require the secretary of the Commerce Department to establish a coastal climate change adaptation preparedness and response program to help states with coastal zone management plans develop statewide coastal climate change adaptation plans.
  • the “Living Shorelines Act of 2019,” H.R. 3115, which would initiate a grant program to support large- and small-scale, climate resilient, living shoreline projects that would help conserve and protect shorelines.