The Baker-Polito Administration today announced more than $3.2 million in funding to support local efforts to proactively plan for and adapt to coastal storm and climate change impacts, including storm surge, flooding, erosion and sea level rise. These Coastal Resilience grants, provided by the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs Office of Coastal Zone Management (CZM), are being awarded to Braintree, Chatham, Chelsea and Everett, Dennis, Duxbury Beach Reservation, Inc., Gloucester, Hull, Ipswich, Kingston, Marion, Mattapoisett, Nantucket, Provincetown, Salem, Wareham and Winthrop. Under the Baker-Polito Administration, 67 projects funded through this grant program, representing an investment of over $9.1 million.
“Massachusetts coastal communities face ongoing and growing challenges from climate change as they work to safeguard residents and businesses, maintain infrastructure and protect developed and natural areas from increasing storm severity and sea level rise impacts,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “Our administration remains committed to providing financial support and technical assistance to help communities invest in a more resilient future.”
“The severe winter storms that affected our coastal communities in recent years have reminded us all of the importance of integrating climate change projections in planning, infrastructure retrofits and shoreline improvement projects,” said Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito. “These grants, as part of our integrated effort to work with communities and stakeholders to mitigate and adapt to climate change impacts, are helping to build a more resilient Commonwealth for generations to come.”
“Significant progress has been made by Massachusetts’ coastal communities in evaluating vulnerabilities to climate change and prioritizing actions to reduce flooding risks and protect public health and safety,” said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Matthew Beaton. “Many of these grants are building on the great work that has already been done and are implementing projects that will provide on-the-ground improvements.”
CZM’s Coastal Resilience Grant Program provides financial and technical support for innovative local efforts to increase awareness and understanding of climate impacts, plan for changing conditions, redesign vulnerable community facilities and infrastructure and implement non-structural measures to increase natural storm damage protection, flood and erosion control and community resilience. Grants can be used for planning, public outreach and feasibility assessment and analysis of shoreline vulnerability, as well as for design, permitting, construction and monitoring of projects that enhance or create natural resources to provide increased shoreline stabilization and flood control.
“Through the Coastal Resilience Grant Program, CZM works directly with cities, towns, and other partners to advance effective strategies to reduce risks from shoreline erosion, flooding and climate change,” said CZM Director Bruce Carlisle. “These proactive local efforts make climate change adaptation and resilience a reality, and we look forward to sharing project results with other coastal communities experiencing similar issues.”
The following 19 projects have been funded in this grant round:
Braintree
Watson Park Shoreline Erosion Mitigation and Coastal Resiliency Improvement, $42,410
The Town of Braintree will conduct a feasibility assessment and prepare conceptual design alternatives for stabilizing an eroded shoreline section at Watson Park on the Fore River. The project will consider the likelihood of increased flooding with sea level rise in developing design plans for a more resilient park.
Chatham
Prioritized Assessment for Coastal Resiliency and Adaptive Management along Chatham’s East-facing Shoreline, $182,122
The Town of Chatham will use tidal, wave and sediment transport models to quantitatively evaluate the inlet and tidal channel dynamics at Chatham Harbor /Pleasant Bay. The study will support a detailed analysis of potential shoreline management options that could sustain the east-facing Chatham shoreline over the next 20 to 30 years.
Chelsea and Everett
Regional Resilience in Two Gateway Cities: Chelsea-Everett Protective Barrier Partnership, $323,406
The Cities of Chelsea and Everett will coordinate on the development of design plans for flood mitigation along the northern tip of the Island End River to comprehensively reduce flooding and sea level rise risks to vulnerable populations, infrastructure and numerous businesses.
Dennis
Improving the Coastal Resiliency of Dr. Bottero Road and Chapin Beach: Coastal Structure and Beach Nourishment Final Design, $101,603
The Town of Dennis will finalize engineering plans and permit documents for a project that will stabilize an eroding section of Chapin Beach using added sand and a coastal structure to hold the sand in place. The project will mitigate impacts to Dr. Bottero Road while preserving shorebird habitat and salt marsh and maintaining access to Chapin Beach and the Aquacultural Research Corporation.
Duxbury Beach Reservation, Inc.
Duxbury Beach Dune Restoration Project, $500,000
The Duxbury Beach Reservation, a local nonprofit organization entrusted with preserving a natural recreational beach for the public, will construct a 3,600-foot-long dune restoration project between the first and second crossovers on Duxbury Beach to improve the resilience of the barrier beach system and provide storm surge and wave protection to the Duxbury Beach access road and the communities of Duxbury and Kingston.
Gloucester
Gloucester High School Campus Coastal Flood Mitigation Project, $63,345
The City of Gloucester will evaluate, design and permit a flood mitigation project to help protect the Gloucester High School building, athletic fields, parking areas and neighborhood, which are vulnerable to coastal flood waters overtopping low-lying shoreline structures along the Annisquam River/Blynman Canal.
Hull
Nature-Based Solutions for Community Resilience on North Nantasket Beach, $142,011
The Town of Hull will develop conceptual designs to enhance the resiliency and protective value of the coastal beach and dune system on North Nantasket Beach, including both near-term dune rehabilitation strategies and long-term, large-scale beach and dune nourishment.
Hull Water Pollution Control Facility (WPCF) Electrical Service Relocation, $148,350
The Town of Hull will replace the WPCF’s incoming underground electrical service and transformer with a new overhead service and elevated transformer to account for increased flooding and future sea level rise impacts.
Ipswich
Building Resilience through Argilla Road Adaptation Designs: Phase I, $156,155
The Town of Ipswich, in partnership with The Trustees of Reservations, will develop design plans for nature-based approaches or green infrastructure to help protect Argilla Road from increased flooding and climate change impacts.
Ipswich River Coastal Resiliency and Bank Stabilization Project: Phase II, $66,010
The Town of Ipswich, working with the Ipswich River Watershed Association, will develop permit-ready plans for stabilizing an eroding section of coastal bank along the Ipswich River to protect a sewer pipe outfall and other infrastructure.
Kingston
Monitoring and Maintenance of a Living Shoreline Project at Gray’s Beach, $50,000
The Town of Kingston will develop and implement a comprehensive monitoring procedure to help ensure the establishment and long-term sustainability of a recently completed salt marsh and dune restoration project at Gray’s Beach Park.
Marion
Assessing the Threats from Climate Change to Marion’s Vulnerable Wastewater Pumping Infrastructure, $93,660
The Town of Marion will evaluate the vulnerability of its wastewater pumping stations and related infrastructure to storm surge and sea level rise impacts and recommend improvements and future actions to reduce risk to the pumping stations.
Mattapoisett
Construction of Mattapoisett’s Potable Water Infrastructure at the Pease’s Point Water Main Crossing, $498,750
The Town of Mattapoisett will relocate an existing water main that traverses an inlet between Pease’s Point and Point Connett to a more landward and deeper location to help ensure that service and water quality will be maintained during storm events and future sea level rise.
Nantucket
Resilient Nantucket: 3D Digital Documentation and Sea Level Rise Visualization, $75,000
The Town of Nantucket will create three-dimensional visualizations of projected flooding and sea level rise at vulnerable sites to expand public awareness and communication of climate change impacts and help advance local resiliency planning efforts.
Provincetown
Ryder Street Beach and Dune Enhancement, $149,153
The Town of Provincetown will design and prepare permit applications for a beach and dune enhancement project along Ryder Street Beach to help provide storm damage protection to critical infrastructure assets and commercial and residential properties.
Salem
Collins Cove Salt Marsh Restoration Project, $216,550
The City of Salem will restore 0.75 acres of fringing salt marsh using coir rolls and native vegetation to provide increased protection from erosion, storm surge and wave forces along the shoreline of Collins Cove. The project will also include monitoring and maintenance efforts led by Salem Sound Coastwatch to help enhance the longevity of the restored site.
Wareham
Installation of Bypass Connection at Cohasset Narrows and Hynes Field Pump Stations, $153,375
The Town of Wareham will install mechanical sewer bypass connections at the Hynes and Cohasset Narrows pump stations to allow the pump stations to immediately continue servicing critical infrastructure facilities in the event of a catastrophic flood event. The town will also prepare design plans for a third bypass connection at the Narrows pump station.
Resiliency Assessment of Overflow Lagoons at the Wareham Water Pollution Control Facility (WPCF), $63,750
The Town of Wareham will determine the additional storage capacity needed at the WPCF overflow lagoons for heavy precipitation and peak flow conditions with elevated groundwater due to sea level rise. Wareham will evaluate potential modifications to the lagoons to prevent excessive wastewater discharging into the Agawam River during flood events.
Winthrop
Coughlin Park Shoreline Restoration, $222,417
The Town of Winthrop will stabilize 360 linear feet of an eroding coastal bank along the bayside of Coughlin Park by nourishing the beach with cobbles and installing coir (or coconut fiber) rolls and planting native vegetation to reduce storm damages at the park and maintain access to the beach.
“With the effects of climate being felt in communities up and down our coastline, these grants help to protect our coastal infrastructure – making them more resilient,”said House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo (D-Winthrop). “These grants complement the Legislature’s environmental agenda which includes the environmental bond bill passed last week that makes $2.4 billion in investments to help cities and towns across the Commonwealth – rural and urban alike – to take actions to safeguard recreational assets, coastal infrastructure and wetlands for future generations.”
“As our ongoing climate crisis continues to unfold, the Coastal Resilience program will be a critical resource for coastal cities and towns. I was proud to be the chief sponsor of the comprehensive adaptation planning bill that was before the MA Senate,” said Senate President Pro Tempore Marc R. Pacheco (D-Taunton). “If the storms from this past winter are any indication of what we can expect going forward, adaptation and resiliency measures will be more important than ever for addressing the worst effects of climate change in the Commonwealth,”
“The communities on the South Shore have been increasingly impacted by winter storms and extreme weather,” said State Senator Patrick O’Connor (R-Weymouth). “This funding will help our towns continue to invest in coastal resiliency and infrastructure projects. I’d like to thank the Baker-Polito Administration for understanding how imperative it is that we protect our coastal communities from the impacts of climate change and rising sea levels.”
“Wareham’s ability to maintain the function of its waste water treatment operations in the event of a catastrophic flood or other natural disaster is a big concern,” said State Representative Susan Gifford (R-Plymouth). “These two Coastal Resilience Grants totaling over $217,000 will greatly help in terms of being prepared for what we may be facing in regard to a changing climate as a coastal community. My thanks to the Baker-Polito Administration for recognizing the unique challenges we have in Wareham to protect our infrastructure.”
“I am grateful to the Baker-Polito administration and the Office of Coastal Zone Management for considering the needs of the 3rd Plymouth District in this process,”said State Representative Joan Meschino (D-Hull). “As residents of a coastal community, we have experienced firsthand the need for investment in coastal resilience and in further climate change mitigation and adaptation initiatives.”
The Massachusetts Office Coastal Zone Management is the lead policy and planning agency on coastal and ocean issues within the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. Through planning, technical and grant assistance and public information programs, CZM seeks to balance the impacts of human activity with the protection of coastal and marine resources. The agency’s work includes helping coastal communities address the challenges of storms, sea level rise and other effects of climate change; working with state, regional and federal partners to balance current and new uses of ocean waters while protecting ocean habitats and promoting sustainable economic development; and partnering with communities and other organizations to protect and restore coastal water quality and habitats.