The Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management has provided over $9 million in grant funding since 2014 to 71 projects through their Coastal Resilience Grant program. The grants fund five types of projects: vulnerability and risk assessments of coastal communities and infrastructure; public education and outreach; development and implementation of local coastal management plans; engineering redesigns and retrofits to protect against sea level rise and storms; and installation of natural infrastructure to reduce coastal erosion and flooding. Example projects described in the document include vulnerability assessments mapping flooding risks in Beverly and identifying flood pathways in Swampscott, as well as sediment transport studies in Sandwich and Barnstable and a natural infrastructure project restoring Collins Cove in Salem.

1. Kathryn Glenn, North Shore Regional Coordinator
Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management
Climate Change: Assessing Risk and
Vulnerability in Massachusetts’
Coastal Communities

2. CZM Coastal Resilience Grants
• Goal: To reduce risks that are exacerbated by
climate change:
– Coastal storms
– Flooding
– Erosion
– Sea level rise
• 71 projects funded since 2014
• Approximately $9,000,000 since 2014
• 5 general types of projects funded

3. 5 Types of projects funded
• Vulnerability and Risk
Assessments*
• Public Education and
Communication
• Local Management
Measures
• Redesigns and Retrofits
• Natural Storm-Damage
Protection Techniques

4. Vulnerability and Risk Assessment
• Projects that map and
evaluate:
– vulnerable critical facilities
– public infrastructure
– other development
– natural resources
• Use best available
techniques and climate
information

5. Different Types of Assessment
Community Vulnerability
Assessments:
• Beverly
• Boston
• Brewster
• Chelsea
• Gloucester
• Hingham
• Hull
• Quincy
Issue/Location specific
Vulnerability Assessments:
• Nantucket (flood pathways)
• Provincetown (flood pathways)
• Swampscott (flood pathways)
• Truro (flood pathways)
• Barnstable (sediment)
• Brewster (sediment)
• Duxbury (sediment)
• Provincetown (sediment)
• Sandwich/Barnstable (sediment)
• Scituate (sediment)
• Salem (green infrastructure)
• Ipswich (green infrastructure)
• Manchester-by-the-Sea (specific
watershed)
• Mattapoisett (potable water)
• Wareham (wastewater)

6. Public Education and Communication
• increase public
understanding of climate
impacts
• develop support for
management measures
and other actions to
address coastal impacts
• Essex
• Ipswich
• Boston
• Newbury
• Hull
• Salem
• Brewster
• Lynn
• Quincy
• Newburyport
• Truro
Projects that:

7. Local Management Measures
Locally implemented
tools:
• community-based
resilience adaptation
plans
• local ordinances
• bylaws
• standards
• other management
measures
• Barnstable
• Boston
• Swampscott
• Beverly
• Salisbury
• Newburyport
• Newbury
• Rowley
• Ipswich
• Essex

8. Engineering projects:
•produce construction designs and plans to
retrofit municipal facilities and
infrastructure
•e.g. wastewater treatment plants, pump
stations, critical roadways and other public
assets
•Goal: to protect function given higher
tides, greater storm surges, and more
intense precipitation
Redesigns and Retrofits
•Hull
•Oak Bluffs
•Salem
•Weymouth
•Winthrop
•New Bedford
•Harwich
•Marshfield
•Plymouth
•Wareham
Photo: Oak Bluffs Photo: Hull

9. Natural Storm-Damage Protection
Techniques
Coastal green
Infrastructure:
• evaluate, design, permit, and
implement natural or nature-
based (hybrid) approaches
• restore, enhance, or create
natural erosion and flood
protection services provided by
public beaches, dunes, coastal
banks, salt marshes, shellfish,
and other resource areas
• Barnstable
• Brewster
• Chilmark
• Duxbury
• Gosnold
• Martha’s
Vineyard
• Newbury
• Plymouth
• Provincetown
• Scituate
• Gloucester
• Sandwich
• Popponesset
Bay
• Dennis
• Edgartown
• Falmouth
• Winthrop

10. Community Vulnerability and Risk
Assessment
Example: Beverly
• Uses best available information and
approaches to model and map SLR
scenarios for 2030 and 2070
• Percent flooding probability and
depth of flooding (100/500 yr events)
• Identifies, ranks and prioritizes at
areas most at risk
• Identifies local land use tools that can
address the identified issues
• Incorporates a robust public outreach
component

11. Flood Pathway Identification
Example: Swampscott
• Model and maps identified
specific low-lying areas that allow
flooding during storm events
• Performed localized wave run-up
and overtopping analysis for each
• Current and projected 2030 flood
conditions were calculated
• Sites assessed for appropriate
green infrastructure approaches

12. Sediment Transport
Example: Sandwich and
Barnstable
• From CC Canal to Barnstable
Harbor
• Regional shoreline
management
• Volume, rate, and direction
of sediment transport
studied
• Intended to inform design,
evaluation and
implementation of regional
strategies

13. Assess Areas for Feasibility of
Green Infrastructure
Example: Salem
• Used criteria matrix to determine
publicly owned waterfront sites in need
of improved resilience
• Physical, biological, social, and
economic factors were considered
• Ten sites chosen for further analysis for
suitability for green infrastructure
• Ultimately three locations determined
to be suitable for green infrastructure
• Currently working on design for Collins
Cove restoration

14. Issue Specific Assessments
Example: Mattapoisett
• Two grants rounds
• First assessed vulnerability of critical
water and wastewater facilities
• Looked at a suite of sea level rise and
hurricane scenarios
• Identified and prioritized actions
according to risk
• Second project focuses on assessing
specific risk of an exposed water
main
• Modeling used to determine best
options for relocation of the water
main to ensure service

15. Great Marsh Vulnerability
Assessment
• Part of GM Resiliency Project
• Funding from Sandy grant
• Regional effort
• IRWA and NWF
• Salisbury, Newburyport,
Newbury, Rowley, Ipswich, and
Essex
• Resiliency Task Forces
• Extensive municipal input and
public engagement
• Individual and regional plans
developed
• Now into the implementation
phase

16. CZM Contacts
Kathryn Glenn, North Shore Regional Coordinator
kathryn.glenn@state.ma.us
978-281-3868
2 State Fish Pier, Gloucester 01930 (regional office)
Tricia Bowie, Coastal Resiliency Specialist
patricia.bowie@state.ma.us
617-626-1186
251 Causeway St. Suite 800, Boston 02114
Julia Knisel, Coastal Shoreline and Floodplain
Manager
julia.knisel@state.ma.us
617-626-1191
251 Causeway St. Suite 800, Boston 02114