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State of Practice in Nature-Based Solutions for Coastal Erosion

Published by the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers, St. Joseph, Michigan www.asabe.org

Citation:  Soil Erosion Research Under a Changing Climate, January 8-13, 2023, Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, USA  .(doi:10.13031/soil.23533)
Authors:   Suhey Ortiz Rosa, Ismael Pagán-Trinidad
Keywords:   Coastal erosion, Methods review, Nature based solutions (NbS).

Abstract

Nature-based Solutions (NbS) are responsive beneficial actions that promote a sustainable management of the ecosystems using nature (IUCN, 2016). Solutions include the restoration, modification, adaptability, and integration of natural ecosystems to address a problem. This concept has been applied globally following trackable standards adopted by non-government organizations (NGOs), federal governments, and the scientific community (IUCN, 2020). Erosion is highly associated to climate changes (precipitation patterns, sea level rise, wave actions). Coastal areas are affected directly by climate change causing loss and modifications of natural and man-made infrastructure (DoD, 2021) due to coastal erosion. The expected sea-level rise under the projected intermediate scenario for 2050 in the Caribbean region is 0.28 m with extreme expected social and economic impacts. Hurricanes María and Irma impacts over the Caribbean in 2017 evidenced the erosion challenges and urgency for using NbS. Barreto et al. (2021) demonstrated the impacts of sediment dynamics over coastal municipalities. In efforts to mitigate the potential impacts, available NbS best practices can be implemented. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) fund allocation towards coral reef restoration and the United States Department of Defense (DoD) investment in natural and hybrid infrastructure at their installations (DoD, 2021; Bridges et al., 2014) are good examples of government agencies‘ investments in NbS. The project presented herein focuses on identifying current solutions for coastal erosion problems applying nature-based practices by means of compiling existing best practices and tools to address coastal erosion problems. A systematic survey of peer-reviewed NbS was conducted by means of two primary mechanisms, namely (1) identifying solutions in prior literature reviews and compiling referenced material, and (2) searching standard bibliographic resources (i.e., Google Scholar) with relevant keyword searches such as “nature solutions + erosion”, “mimic nature + coastal erosion”, and “coastal erosion + ecosystems approach”. This project is expected to provide a set of criteria for assessing actions relative to ecological units (e.g., mangroves, wetlands, coral reefs), physical mechanisms promoting advantages (e.g., reducing wave action, retention of sediments, vegetation growth), level or degree of efficacy (e.g., low, medium, high) and actions functionality (e.g., is useful for tropical or island environments).

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