The Significance of Coastlines and the Effects of Climate Change
Coastal ecosystems benefit us in many ways but face a set of unique and complex challenges. “In 2024 alone, there were 27 weather and climate disasters in the U.S. that exceeded one billion dollars of destruction each. At the same time, we’re losing 80,000 acres of wetlands, which naturally protect coastal communities during climate disasters, every year. That’s almost seven football fields an hour,” said Chris Hilke, Director for Coastal Resilience at the National Wildlife Federation.
“So we’re facing a dual challenge here. That’s why protecting and restoring these vulnerable coastal habitats is key. They safeguard thousands of wildlife species and habitats that provide risk reduction to vulnerable coastal communities by lessening coastal storm flood surge, providing opportunities for floodwater storage, reducing erosion and more. This solution also has the potential to save the government an exorbitant amount of money in recovery costs.”
Using Natural Infrastructure as a Solution
The NWF’s Coastal Resilience Growth Fund aims to use natural infrastructure as a solution for this crisis. “There was a study after Hurricane Sandy that suggested $675 million dollars in reconstruction costs were averted as a result of having coastal habitats in front of vulnerable coastal communities. This is a prime example of how natural infrastructure can be great climate solutions. When storms come in—which they inevitably will—having natural buffers in place will be critical,” said Hilke.
Natural infrastructure includes things like barrier islands, salt marshes, dune and beach systems, oyster and coral reefs and more. These features occur naturally but have been impacted by human development, weakening their benefits until they are restored or reinforced. By proactively strengthening and increasing these features—in tune with their local environments—we mitigate the impacts of storms and other coastal hazards for neighboring communities.
How National Wildlife Federation is Collaborating to Address the Issue
The Coastal Resilience Growth Fund’s work falls into three buckets: advancing the implementation of large-scale innovative projects that demonstrate scalable outcomes; advancing the use of nature-based infrastructure approaches in communities that have historically not had access to these kinds of solutions; and advancing federal, state and local policy initiatives that allow for the implementation of these approaches.
The NWF team collaborates with organizations nationwide that know their local ecosystems best and are dedicated to increasing coastal resilience in their state. In New Jersey specifically, the fund works closely with its affiliate organization, the New Jersey Audubon, as well as a coalition called the NJ Coastal Resilience Collaborative, working to enhance the resilience of the state’s coastal communities. This includes projects such as oyster castles, which provide water filtration and energy reductions during storms, and dune restoration, which provides communities and habitats with natural protection from coastal hazards.
Looking Forward
This complex issue cannot be addressed by anyone alone. By focusing on collaboration with local organizations, capacity-building and innovation, we can make real progress.
“It is important to remember that there is no silver bullet for enhancing coastal resilience,” Hilke continued. “That is why the Coastal Resilience Growth Fund is taking a multipronged approach to address these issues from different angles simultaneously. We are investing in solutions that will not only protect and increase the resilience of vulnerable coastal communities, but also expand the extent of these coastlines that are home to thousands of species that are critical to us all.”
To learn more about NWF’s conservation efforts, visit their website.
About the Coastal Resilience Growth Fund: The National Coastal Resilience Fund (NCRF) provides resources to implement natural and nature-based approaches that serve to reduce risk to vulnerable human communities while enhancing the resilience of the coastal wildlife habitats those communities depend upon. Advancing these important approaches can reduce nutrient runoff, sequester carbon, stabilize shorelines, provide important wildlife habitat, store floodwater, reduce storm surge, as well as mitigating other impacts from natural disasters.