HUNDREDS OF MARYLAND'S COASTAL LEADERS ATTEND "BUILDING COAST-SMART COMMUNITIES" INTERACTIVE SUMMIT IN ANNAPOLIS

On behalf of Governor Martin O'Malley, the Chesapeake & Coastal Program extends a warm thank you to the over 170 participants who attended Monday's "Building Coast-Smart Communities" interactive summit. This event marked the kick off of Maryland's Coast-Smart Communities Initiative, a new program committed to providing technical and financial assistance to coastal communities to help address their vulnerability to the impacts of climate change. 

From town mayors and state elected officials to city planners and emergency managers, the event brought together community leaders to discuss and work through climate change and sea level rise adaptation measures using a scorecard based on real world actions that Maryland's coastal communities could take to protect their people, infrastructure and investments from future risk.  Developed with the help of state and local experts, the Coast-Smart Communities scorecard provided a mechanism for participants to learn about the difficult choices Maryland's communities face: how to anticipate risks and opportunities; and how to build readiness, adaptability and resilience. 

Click here to view the full press release.

To view television coverage of the event, visit: http://wjz.com/local/sea.level.2.995688.html.

Those interested in learning more about what the new Coast-Smart Communities Initiative could do for their community, e-mail Gwen Shaughnessy with the Chesapeake & Coastal Program or call 410-260-8743.

As another hurricane season approaches and government leaders debate U.S. climate policy, a first-ever coalition of leading insurers, public officials, risk experts, builders and conservation groups recently announced a bold blueprint of policy changes and common sense actions that could reduce economic losses from future storms and rising sea levels by as much as half along U.S. coastlines. The coalition urges the Obama Administration, Congress, local leaders and the private sector to see that these actions are implemented through regulation, investment, education and other means. 

Directed by The Heinz Center and CERES (Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies), the blueprint was endorsed today by a diverse group, including The Travelers Institute, The Nature Conservancy, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Wharton School, and the Mayor of Charleston, S.C. 

The blueprint's specific recommendations include:

• Enabling planning for climate impacts by providing the necessary science and decision-making tools;
• Requiring risk-based land use planning;
• Designing adaptable infrastructure and building code standards to meet future risk;
• Strengthening ecosystems as part of a risk mitigation strategy;
• Developing flexible adaptation plans;
• Maintaining a viable private property and casualty insurance market;
• Integrating climate change impacts into due diligence for investment and lending.
  

The report, Resilient Coasts: A Blueprint for Action, can be downloaded from the Heinz Center's website at: http://www.heinzctr.org/publications/PDF/Resilient_Coasts_Blueprint_Final.pdf.

It is important to note that CERES staff are also members of Maryland's Climate Change Insurance Advisory Committee, a group tasked with advising Governor O'Malley and the Insurance Commissioner Ralph Tyler on adaptive policy options that work to address climate risks while sustaining affordable insurance for Marylanders. To learn more about Maryland's Climate Change Insurance Advisory Committee, e-mail Joe Abe with the Chesapeake & Coastal Program or call 410-260-8740.