Preview to ICAP’s Forthcoming Sea-Level Rise and Coastal Land Use Policy Tool Kit

This is how ICAP’s forthcoming sea-level rise adaptation policy study operates.  Slated for official release in January 2012, this “tool kit” details Hawai‘i’s unique state and local coastal land use policies and provides specific recommendations for utilizing such tools to facilitate sea-level rise adaptation.  Consistent with current scientific understanding, this Tool Kit recommends that state and local decision-makers begin planning for sea-level rise of approximately 1 foot by 2050 and 3 feet by 2100, with reevaluation of this benchmark upon release of the Fifth Assessment Report of the IPCC in 2014.

The study draws cutting-edge examples from more than a dozen U.S. coastal states and communities and covers 24 policy tools, organized under the following categories:

• Planning Tools – such as policies and objectives under the Hawai‘i Coastal Zone Management Act and new State priority guidelines adopted from the Hawai‘i Sustainability Plan 2050
• Regulatory Tools – featuring innovative coastal construction control lines, rolling easements, and cluster development
• Spending Tools – including capital improvement programs and conservation easements
• Market-Based Tools – such as transfer of development rights programs and mandatory real estate disclosures

Thanks to feedback from Hawai‘i state and local decision-makers (obtained from numerous targeted interviews and two stakeholder workshops), the tool kit also offers solutions for overcoming potential legal, administrative, economic, and social barriers associated with implementing sea-level rise adaptation measures.  To conclude, the study synthesizes recommendations into matrix charts that propose timeframes and suggest lead agencies for initiating action.

Before official release in January, ICAP suggests the following for related information:

•Hawai‘i’s Changing Climate: Briefing Sheet (ICAP, 2010)

•Kailua Beach and Dune Management Plan (DLNR & UH Sea Grant, 2010)

•Climate Change and Regulatory Takings in Coastal Communities (ICAP & UH Sea Grant, 2011)

•Adapting to Climate Change: A Planning Guide for State and Local Managers (NOAA, 2010)

The study is funded by the NOAA Pacific Services Center through the NOAA Coastal Storms Program.