Guiding Adaptation Decisions with Resilience Metrics
Our nation’s infrastructure is not only degrading due to deferred maintenance, but it was designed based on our limited history of climate hazards. During the past decade intensifying and more frequent storms such as 2024 Hurricanes Debby and Helene highlight the need for more rigorous and complex assessments of these threats. This presentation will discuss the resources, expertise, and community buy-in needed to build resilience for our communities given the changing climate. Understanding future climate projections and coastal conditions is essential for the effective planning and design of resilient communities and infrastructure. Adapting to climate change and sea level rise includes looking at the long-term sustainability and level of service of our utilities, roadways, and natural environment. In-depth planning and design of updated coastal infrastructure includes a perspective on social equity to help our most vulnerable populations build resilience to increasingly frequent and severe extreme events. Ensuring underserved communities are not overlooked when choosing from a variety of flood adaptation options requires a different view of evaluating resilience metrics. Resilience metrics are often measured in terms such as acres of land flooded, number of houses impacted, miles of roadway inaccessible, and estimated damage costs. These quantitative measures indicate areas which need improvement for a community to “bounce back” from the impacts of extreme events to become resilient. Incorporating social equity in the prioritization of design alternatives leads to a shift in thinking – one that evaluates the people who are most affected and who often lack socioeconomic resilience to quickly recover from a flood event. Coastal development continues to coincide with increasing challenges resulting from a changing natural environment (sea level rise, amplifying storm intensities, accelerating erosion, etc.). To address these issues, engineers, scientists, planners, and decision makers must implement resilience in engineering designs and invest in the proper solutions today to better prepare for the problems of tomorrow. This presentation will highlight some of the industry-leading initiatives and frameworks used to successfully incorporate resilience and adaptation planning.
Author Bio
Dr. Angela Schedel is the Director of Coastal Programs at HDR. A licensed Professional Engineer, she is responsible for leading a team of experts helping restore and maintain our vulnerable coastlines. Along with a doctorate in civil engineering that focused on sea level rise adaptation, she excels at equipping clients and communities to face coastal zone impacts. Before joining industry, she had a 24-year career in the U.S. Navy where she taught ocean engineering at the U.S. Naval Academy and flew search and rescue helicopters.
