Abstract

Coastal communities exist on the front lines of diverse natural hazards and the growing impacts of climate change. While traditional strategies for dealing with coastal hazards have often involved the hardening or armoring of shorelines, more recent research and practice have demonstrated the value and cost-effectiveness of “living shorelines” and other ecosystem-based strategies for coastal protection. To explore potential relationships among geographic exposure (waterfront vs. inland), shoreline condition (armored vs. natural), and hazard concerns, we surveyed 583 waterfront and inland residents in the northern Gulf of Mexico. We found that overall concern for coastal hazards was similar across waterfront and inland residents, as well as among residents with both armored and natural shorelines. However, concern for specific hazards differed across these groups. Waterfront residents were significantly more concerned about major hurricanes and erosion than inland residents. Conversely, inland residents were more concerned with drought and flooding than waterfront residents. Among waterfront residents, specific hazard concerns were similar between residents with natural and armored shorelines with two key exceptions. Residents with armored shorelines reported higher concern for erosion and sea level rise than residents with natural shorelines. Our results suggest that armored shorelines do not necessarily alleviate concerns about coastal hazards. In the context of balancing social and ecological objectives in addressing coastal hazards or adapting to climate change, understanding the perceptions and behaviors of coastal residents is essential for conserving and protecting coastal ecosystems along residential shorelines.

Highlights

  • On the front lines of erosion, sea level rise, and hurricanes, coastal communities provide a lens into the historical and projected future costs and consequences of coastal hazards and climate adaptation [1,2,3]

  • The results described in this paper were collected from a series of questions aimed at exploring relationships among geographic exposure, shoreline type, and concerns for coastal hazards

  • When comparing overall concern represented by the Overall Hazards Concern” (OHC), we found that concern was similar between waterfront and inland residents of coastal counties (n = 560, Z = 0.219, P = 0.827), as well as similar among homeowners with armored and natural shorelines (n = 170, Z = 1.566, P = 0.117; Figure 3)

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Summary

Introduction

On the front lines of erosion, sea level rise, and hurricanes, coastal communities provide a lens into the historical and projected future costs and consequences of coastal hazards and climate adaptation [1,2,3]. In the United States alone, approximately 1.3 million people, including 30,000 families below the poverty line and 250,000 elderly people, reside in the highest quartile of exposure to coastal hazards [4]. Scientists, engineers, conservationists, and policy-makers are intensely focused on understanding the influences of exposure and shoreline condition on coastal hazards [5,6], as well as the role of coastal property owners in brokering risk through their decisions to manage their coastlines [2]. Many waterfront residents prefer hardened shorelines and prioritize perceived cost-effectiveness above environmental concerns [11,12]

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