As communities continue to grow along the east and west coasts of the USA, there is growing recognition of the need for coastal resiliency – a term that encompasses a broad range of both man-made and environmental issues, referring to the ability of communities to withstand and/or rebuild after catastrophic events such as hurricanes and flooding.
In the coastal realm, even the smallest changes – say a slight rise in sea level – could have major impacts. Decisions that are made today about how things should or shouldn’t be built could have significant repercussions – for human lives, the environment, our infrastructure, and of course the economy.
We asked Steven Davie, GHD’s North American Service Line Leader for Maritime & Coastal, for his thoughts on some of the challenges of increasing our coastal resiliency on both sides of the country.
Q: Is there a way we can continue to safely grow coastal communities?
A: Yes – while maritime developments often pose unique challenges, there are ways for designs to take into account coastal processes, including the effects of severe storms and elevated water levels, winds, tides, and currents. In the past, we haven’t always taken this approach, or had the same incentives, but now governments are starting to ask for more upfront work to be done to prevent repeat situations – things like risk assessments, risk management plans and sea level rise assessments are now mandatory in a growing number of places. For our team, we are really meticulous in the preliminary planning and feasibility stages, to make sure that by the time we get to the later design phases we have thoroughly investigated all risks and conditions that may be impacted. We want to develop the best option that is not only functional and cost-effective (still essential project components!), but that is also sensitively designed for its unique environment and that will contribute to sustainability in the best and broadest sense of that word.
Q: What occurrences or incidents are the biggest risks on each coast, and why?
A: On the west coast, there is a lot of emphasis right now on shoreline restoration, because coastal access, recreation, and real estate are so central to the culture and to the economy. The main coastal highway (1 and 101) has for a long time provided the main access, but over time shorelines have eroded, bluffs have become destabilized, and flooding occasionally restricts access, all of which reduces people’s ability to enjoy these places. We’re currently working on one of the first living shoreline projects in Southern California, which is going to create a new coastal dune habitat for Cardiff State Beach. Living shorelines use green infrastructure techniques and materials such as native plantings, sand and rocks as an alternative to hard shoreline stabilization methods like bulkheads. Living shorelines have been shown to be more resilient against storms than hard shorelines, and can provide benefits like nutrient pollution remediation, essential fish habitat provision, carbon sequestration and storage, and buffer shorelines from waves and storms.
On the east coast, there are more large storm events and greater population density, so preventing or mitigating against flooding and damage during tropical storms and hurricanes is one of the main areas of focus. Here we see concerns such as protecting infrastructure, preventing loss of life, and quick recovery when events do happen. As well, we see issues such as port expansion and remediation, wherein decisions need to be made around the best way to expand aging assets, increase productivity, and/or also diversify business. The gulf coast has been impacted by numerous hurricanes and other disasters, such as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Coastal restoration efforts have been focused on rebuilding and creating barriers for storm damage risk reduction. What all of these have in common is that they require finding a balance between our business, human, and environmental activities. We always need to assess how everything interacts with our natural environment, and consider whether decisions could have unintended consequences down the road.
Q: What areas still have the most room for improvement?
A: Our land-use policies on some waterfronts continue to be implemented in a piecemeal fashion, rather than as part of a cohesive and holistic strategy. If we fail to genuinely implement protective policies based on the science we have available today, then we will continue to see areas being developed in places or in ways where they will be at risk of failing. In some cases, there is a lack of incentive against imprudent development, and in others it may be a lack of communication, or understanding. Another big area that is still subject to change is the projected rates of sea level rise. Because our actions are continually having impacts, and with new weather data and new projection models being developed, it is difficult to plan with certainty. Often we run multiple scenarios to develop recommendations, but the science here is still evolving.
Q: Where or what is your new team focused on?
A: Our team has expanded this past year in response to market needs. Our clients are dealing with demand for maritime development and infrastructure driven by economic growth, as well as projected changing sea levels, natural disasters, and the need for coastal restoration and resiliency engineering. We’ve set up centers of excellence around marine structures, waterfront development, dredging, environmental impacts, coastal engineering and port planning and logistics, in order to bring together our best resources for our clients. Having been in this industry for over two decades now, I can say I have a ‘dream team’ of maritime and coastal professionals. Each team member is a recognized leader in the maritime and coastal community, with many decades of experience and proven performance. We have incredible depth and diversity of experience, allowing us to take a holistic approach to the many challenges our clients are facing.
For more on all of these topics, watch for the next piece in this mini-series about coastal resiliency – we’ll be following up with other team leads for their insights on living shorelines, co-existing with our natural habitats, and how coastal cities can become more resilient.
Meet Steven
Steven Davie is GHD’s North American Service Line Leader for Maritime & Coastal. With about 23 years of experience in civil & coastal engineering, his experience includes working on ports, harbors, estuaries, and rivers. Steven’s technical experience includes feasibility studies, EIS development, data collection, dredging, hydrodynamic & water quality modeling, coastal engineering, mitigation, and engineering design. His recent project experience includes the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project, Port of New Orleans (NOLA) Strategic Master Plan, Port of Miami Cargo Gates, Port of Montreal Strategic Positioning, Jasper Ocean Terminal Development, Post 45 Charleston Harbor Deepening, Panama Canal Third Set of Locks Expansion, Port Qasim Mititgation in Pakistan, Choctaw Point Terminal EIS in Alabama, and the Calcasieu Ship Channel Salinity Control in Louisiana. For more information, please contact Steven.Davie@ghd.com.