Jon Reiner, AICP, Town of North Kingstown November 25, 2013 Beach SAMP Stakeholder Meeting

1. Climate Adaptation for Coastal Communities
Setting the Local Context: North Kingstown, RI
November 25, 2013
Beach SAMP Stakeholder Meeting
Jon Reiner, AICP
Town of North Kingstown

2. The Time is NOW to Act:
ADAPT and MITIGATE

3. October 29, 2013

4. 10 Sept 2010

5. Rising waters with tides and storms
Superstorm Sandy – 4’above MHHW
Spring Tide – 2010 – 1.4 MHHW
MHW, Simulation of 1’ and 3’ SLR

6. “SuperStorm” Sandy – Wickford Village

7. Newport Tide Gauge
October 30, 2012 ‐ 4’ above MHHW

8. MHHW +4’ SLR
MHHW +3’ SLR
“Superstorm” Sandy superimposed with sea level rise.
Shows approximately 4’ above MHHW

9. Mapping Sea Level Rise – Wickford – Infrastructure
http://seagrant.gso.uri.edu/climate/slr_tools.html

10. MHHW +1938 Hurricane (approx. +9.5 feet)
Wickford Village – Photo Credit: Melissa Devine, 2013

11. Mapping Sea Level Rise – Wickford
Real Property

12. Modeling Salt Marsh Migration
…From Pilot to Program to Policy…
TNC, 2011
http://seagrant.gso.uri.edu/climate/slr_tools.html

13. Marsh Impacts

14. Impediments to Coastal Marsh Migration

15. How do you start to Adapt?
If you had maps and
information
identifying
vulnerable assets,
what would you do
with it?

16. Mapping Sea Level Rise
Project Overview: Planning for Change
Locate problem areas
‐ Identify
‐ Evaluate exposure
‐ Communicate
Develop usable tools
for town/state
planners
Providence, RI 1938

17. What has the State of Rhode Island done?
• RI Sea Level Rise Policy
– RI CRMC Red Book Section
145
– 3‐5’ by 2100
• Comprehensive Plans
– Rhode Island
Comprehensive Planning
and Land Use Act update
– Requirement for plans to
address Natural Hazards

18. What is North Kingstown doing?
• FEMA Community Rating
System NK’s Rating = 9
• Currently 5% reduction on flood
insurance premiums town‐wide
• NK taking steps to get down to an “8”
rating = 10% reduction!
• Hazard Mitigation Plan
updated in 2013, estimated
adoption by end of year
• NK will incorporate natural
hazards planning into 2014
rewrite of NK’s
Comprehensive Community
Plan

19. What can residents & businesses do?
•Be informed.
• Know your risk
• Know who to call & how to access
resources
•Make a plan.
• Comp Plans & Hazard Mitigation
Plans locally
• Elevate, relocate, or floodproof
•Take action.
• Evacuate areas at risk
• Get involved in Comprehensive
Community Plan & Beach SAMP
•Spread the word!

20. HEIGHT NOW
Rate of Rise 1930-1996
9.4 +/- 1 inch/100 yr
Rate of Rise 1930-2013
10.8 +/- .7 inch/100 yr
Adapted from:
http://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/sltrends/
sltrends_station.shtml?stnid=8452660%20Newport,%20RI
Boothroyd 2013

21. Timeframes & Planning Horizons
What are we planning for?
1. Daily sea level rise = 2 high tides
per day
2. Storm events – nor’easters,
tropical storms, hurricanes

22. 2030
Timeframes & Planning Horizons
2030 ‐ Comprehensive Plan
20 year “BLUEPRINT”
0.6 ‐ 1’ SLR + storm event scenario
2050
2075
2100
Design life of infrastructure &
maintenance schedules
Updated science & modeling
Lessons learned from other places

24. Natural Hazards and
Comprehensive Planning
Why is this important?
• Storm intensity and
storm damage
• Flooding
• Drought
• Sea level rise
• Impacts on the built
and natural
environments

25. COMP PLAN 2008
STUDY
ACTION
POLICY
Public Process and
Input
COMP PLAN 2013

26. Climate Change and
Comprehensive Planning
• How can we plan for
something that is not
really happening ? 
• Natural Hazards Reviewed
and assessed via Hazard
Mitigation Plans
• Comprehensive Plan
Element on Climate
Change

27. Local Applications
• Regulatory – zoning ordinance and comprehensive plan
amendments
• Hazard Mitigation Plan – incorporate and implement actions
• Educate Locally ‐ distribute information to elected officials and
homeowners
• Incorporate into town GIS and IMS ‐ more accessible information
• Community Rating System (CRS) impacts – achieve lower rating
• Transportation – ID roads and infrastructure inundated
• State of RI Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) –
incorporate into future application
• Capital Improvement Plan (municipal) –infrastructure
improvements (i.e sewers, dams, roadways, water)
• Building Code ‐ work with RIBA and CRMC to modify code in
coastal zone
• Open space acquisition – ID/prioritize lands for protection, salt
marsh creation

28. PARCELS impacted
All Parcels
by 5‐foot Sea Level
MHHW +5’ SLR
Rise scenario
North Kingstown
Study Areas
1
$80M
of property in Wickford
‐150 parcels‐
(Study Areas 5 & 6)
potentially
impacted by 2100
2
3
4
6
5
7
8
9
5%
10
of total
assessed property
values in NK
11
12

29. CASE EXAMPLE #1:
Cedarhurst Condominiums
Cedarhurst, High Tide, May 24, 2013

31. Cedarhurst, High Tide, May 24, 2013

32. Superstorm Sandy, water level observed by residents
Superstorm Sandy, Newport Tide Gauge, MHHW + 4‐feet
Cedarhurst, High Tide, May 24, 2013

33. CASE EXAMPLE #2:
Wickford Commercial Center

38. Study Area #6 ‐ Roads
QUESTIONS:
1. Current condition of the
roads?
2. Brown Street Bridge?
3. Maintenance schedule?
4. Planning horizons?
5. Acceptance of risk?
6. Storm readiness &
response?
7. Considerations:
•
•
•
•
Roads impacted by SLR Scenarios ‐ ALL
No action
Rebuild
Relocate
Abandon

39. Parcels ‐ MHHW +1‐foot Sea Level Rise

40. Parcels ‐ MHHW +3‐foot Sea Level Rise

41. Parcels ‐ MHHW +5‐foot Sea Level Rise

42. CASE EXAMPLE #3:
Wickford Historic District

43. MHHW +1‐foot Sea Level Rise

44. MHHW +3‐foot Sea Level Rise

45. MHHW +1‐foot Sea Level Rise +3‐feet SURGE

46. MHHW +5‐foot Sea Level Rise

47. MHHW +1938 Hurricane (approx. +9.5 feet)

48. MHHW +1938 Hurricane (approx. +9.5 feet)
1938
Hurricane
Water Mark
Esmond Avenue, Wickford – Photo Credit: Melissa Devine, 2013

49. WHAT ARE THE MAPS TELLING US?
Study Area 5,
Wickford Historic:
• Many properties exposed with
high assessed value
• Ingress/egress barrier @ Main
St/Brown St – no alternate
route out of the neighborhood
• Evacuation routes out of this
area are exposed to 3‐foot SLR
scenario
• Many septic systems were
recently upgraded – how do
we include SLR assessment in
future sewer planning?
• Historic properties – what are
the options to retain historic
listing?

50. 2013 FEMA
Flood
Insurance
Rate Map
(FIRM)

51. Challenges for Municipalities
1. TIMEFRAME is the most
difficult
Local officials have trouble with
20 yr planning horizons and
setting clear policies for those;
50‐ 100 yrs = new ballgame
2. The SCIENCE SKEPTICS are
still impacting local
officials
Is it really happening, or is this
just another geological cycle?

52. Challenges for Municipalities
3. The MEDIA ‐ the fact or fiction of SLR/CC and
what is covered
• Creates doubts and many more questions than
answers
• Sound bites/shots on SLR/CC do not do the science
justice
4. Education on these topics is key
• Reintroduce a project every time you present
• Have to disprove all of the media coverage

53. Challenges for Municipalities
5. Link SLR/CC mitigation
and adaption to the
same flood zone issues
and concerns
• Preparing for floods
and Natural Hazards
will better prepare
municipalities for
SLR/CC and vice versa

54. Challenges for Municipalities
6. What should we do now and
how can we apply principles
today for impacts that may
not be seen for 20‐50 years
• Long term infrastructure
projects – apply SLR/CC
principals
• Subdivisions, development,
and redevelopment in flood
prone or SLR impacted areas –
use Best Management
Practices and common sense
Roads impacted by SLR Scenarios ‐ ALL

55. Challenges for Municipalities
7. A CLEAR national policy and
recommended papers, steps, and
information sources would be very
helpful for local planners and decision
makers
A resource that is easily accessible to the
general public in an easily digestible format

56. Climate Adaptation for Coastal Communities
QUESTIONS?
Setting the Local Context: North Kingstown, RI
November 25, 2013
Beach SAMP Stakeholder Meeting
Jon Reiner, AICP
Town of North Kingstown