Hawaii Coastline Report Links Resilience with Access
Hawaii Coastline Report Links Resilience with Access
Abstract
A landscape architect-led study from the University of Hawaii combines climate adaptation and waterfront access. Image courtesy of the University of Hawai'i Community Design Center. United States-controlled islands such as Hawaii, Guam, Puerto Rico, and American Samoa are rarely mentioned in U.S. climate coverage, but the projected impacts of sea-level rise to island communities are severe and far-reaching. According to a report from the State of Hawaii's Coastal Zone Management program, if seas rise as projected over the next century, Honolulu will face an acute loss of "Valuable urban land, the geographic isolation of Waikiki, frequent disruption oftransportation systems, and inestimable property losses. Inundation may render much of the present urban district uninhabitable." That report was published in 1985. In the 35 years since, Hawaii has taken little discernible action to mitigate or adapt to this future. Now, a recent study from the University of Hawaii Community Design Center will provide a foundation for more serious debate around Hawaii's climate future and outline a vision for a more resilient, better connected, and people-centered waterfront. "You can't look at a living shoreline system in Hawaii without acknowledging that there used to be this remarkable sequence of freshwater productive ecosystems," Stilgenbauer says.