Sea-Level Rise and Coasts

Rising sea levels and frequent intense storms are rapidly changing Northeastern US coastal landscapes and threatening the vital ecosystem services they provide. Researchers supported by this Northeast CASC project will use landscape models, co-developed with coastal managers and tribal managers, to predict expected coastal changes for different environments (e.g., beaches, wetlands, rocky headland

Wetlands along the Gulf Coast are crucial for reducing hurricane-induced flooding and as habitat for diverse wildlife, but are threatened by rising sea levels, climate change, and coastal development. Using remote sensing data, future climate data, and numerical models, researchers from this South Central CASC-supported project will collaborate with local expert groups to create data and maps abou

The US Virgin Islands are vulnerable to sea level rise, intense storms, and unpredictable rainfall brought by climate change. These changes influence the health of freshwater streams (known as “ghuts”), sedimentation, erosion and water quality (“grit”), as well as aquatic communities and ecosystems (“gills”) that are unique to the islands and important for indigenous peoples’ heritage, local fishe

Climate and economic stressors are causing large numbers of people to emigrate from Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, even while new development continues. To provide a tool to help managers and policymakers make informed decisions about development and conservation, researchers for this Southeast CASC-supported project will co-produce a land change model that can simulate future scenarios

The Bonnet Carré spillway (BCS) is a flood-control structure along the Lower Mississippi River designed to prevent flooding in the city of New Orleans by diverting excess water into the nearby Lake Pontchartrain estuary. Alarmingly, the BCS was opened as many times over the past decade (2011–2020) as it had been over the six prior decades combined (1951–2010), with devastating effects on the estua

The Gulf of Mexico coast of Louisiana and Texas faces threats from increasingly destructive extreme weather, heat, subsidence, and coastal erosion. Inland areas also face stronger storms, floods, and shifts in land development patterns. Increasing drought and extreme heat in Texas and New Mexico also exacerbate fires and floods. All of these regions are culturally rich, rapidly changing areas wher

Palau’s Jellyfish Lake, locally known as Ongeim’l Tketau (OTM), is an iconic tourism site and an important area of biodiversity. This landlocked marine lake is part of the Rock Island Southern Lagoon UNESCO World Heritage Site, representing an expression of Palauan national pride, and has brought in millions of dollars to the local Koror State economy. OTM is also home to the unique Golden jellyfi

Loko iʻa, Hawaiian fishponds, are part of a rich history of indigenous aquaculture dating back to the 1400s. These unique ecosystems serve as key models of food sustainability across Hawaiʻi and the Pacific region. Hawaiʻi, among the most geographically isolated regions throughout the world, currently faces many challenges including environmental uncertainties, increasing urbanization, a growing p

Coastal wetland loss is a serious concern along the northern Gulf of Mexico, especially in Texas and Louisiana where rates of wetland loss and relative sea-level rise are among the highest in the world, extreme storms are becoming more frequent, and flooding events are intensifying. Because coastal wetlands of the northern Gulf of Mexico provide numerous ecosystem services, including providing cri

Steep, mountainous watersheds, dramatic climate gradients, and tight links between the land and sea are common features of both the Pacific Islands and Southeast Alaska. In these "ridge-to-reef" and “icefield-to-ocean" ecosystems, environmental changes that occur at higher elevations have downstream impacts on the waters below. Today, these two ecosystems are undergoing changes in climate that are

The Vietnamese government has committed to climate mitigation and adaptation in support of the Paris Agreement. Implementation of Vietnam’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) to adaptation involves a greater focus on the Mekong River Delta, which is poised to be impacted by sea level rise. Saline intrusion from sea level rise and droughts can affect aquatic ecosystems and the services they p

Coastal flooding and erosion caused by storms and sea-level rise threaten infrastructure and public safety in Alaska Native communities. Though the problem is well known, there are few tools that can assess local vulnerability to coastal flood hazards. Even fewer tools can be customized with specific community information to support local adaptation planning. The main goal of this project is t