Tides, Taxes, and New Tactics: Planning for Sea Level Rise and Coastal Adaptation

The Tides, Taxes, & New Tactics project investigated municipal-level economic and social impacts of sea level rise and storm surge hazards and developed locally-relevant adaptation and resiliency planning strategies that address local and regional vulnerabilities. The project used local sea level rise projections, storm surge modeling, municipal geospatial data, and population and demographic information to complete a GIS-based socio-economic vulnerability assessment of coastal flood hazards.

The assessment generated valuable information about flooding impacts to coastal property and populations, assessed value of impacted property, associated implications for the municipal tax base, and impacts to the local and regional economy. The assessment findings are informing the development of locally relevant and tailored adaptation, mitigation, and resilience strategies that municipalities can employ to protect people, property, and natural resources from the impacts of coastal flooding now and into the future.

Participating Communities: Kennebunk, Wells, and York

Project Partners: Wells Reserve, GEI Consultants, rbouvier consulting

Work Products:

• Final Report: Tides Taxes and New Tactics: Adaptation Planning for the Impacts of Sea Level Rise and Storm Surge. The report summarizes the results of the sea level rise vulnerability assessments for Kennebunk, Wells, and York; presents maps showing impacts from 1.6, 3.9, and 6.1 feet of sea level rise; provides an overview of coastal flood hazards facing southern Maine; and presents a range of adaptation and resilience strategies that towns can integrate into existing planning, policy, and decision-making frameworks. While the assessment results are specific to the project towns, the adaptation strategies are transferable to any coastal municipality.

• Project results summary for Kennebunk, York and Wells
  
• Virtual Town Workshops 
• Kennebunk Recorded Workshop, Workshop Summary
• York Recorded Workshop, Workshop Summary
• Wells Recorded Workshop, Workshop Summary

• Socio-Economic Analysis Final Report by rbouvier consulting
• Vulnerability Assessment Final Report by GEI

 
Presentations:

• Project Advisory Committee Meeting Presentation – January 15, 2020
• Project Advisory Committee Meeting Presentation – April 15, 2020
• GEI Vulnerability Assessment Results Presentation – November 24, 2020
• rbouvier consulting: Socio-economic Presentation – November 24, 2020 

Funding: Maine Coastal Communities Grant Program (FY20)

Project Contact: Abbie Sherwin, Senior Planner & Coastal Resilience Coordinator