Adapting to Sea Level Rise: The Role of Farmland Easements Study - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Adapting to Sea Level Rise: The Role of Farmland Easements

Study Area Study Area

• 44% of tidal flats may disappear • 52% of brackish marshes lost or converted to other habitat types • 25% of tidal fresh marsh lost

Site 2: Skagit Bay Initial Condition 11.2 Inches by 2050 No Dikes 27.3 Inches by 2100 No Dikes

The Problem The Problem � Loss of coastal Loss of coastal � wetlands due to wetlands due to submergence submergence � Wetlands cannot Wetlands cannot � migrate inland migrate inland because of human because of human infrastructure or infrastructure or geomorphology geomorphology

“In the next century, the majority of In the next century, the majority of “ America’ ’s tidal wetlands could be s tidal wetlands could be America replaced by a wall, not because replaced by a wall, not because anyone decided that this should anyone decided that this should happen but because no one decided happen but because no one decided it should not.” ” it should not. James Titus 1998 James Titus 1998

Sea Level Rise Initiative • Direct Programs • Science • Policy

Direct Programs Farmland Easements

Easement Terms • Purchase development rights • Farming allowed to continue indefinitely • Lands eventually placed on the conservation buyer’s market • Buyer assumes costs for restoring to estuary

Science

Tidal Flats Salt Marsh Brackish Marsh

Sea Level Rise and Brant

Brant Population Objectives 20,000 18,000 16,000 14,000 12,000 10,000 8,000 6,000 4,000 2,000 0 N. Puget Willapa Bay Tillamook Humboldt Bay Sound

Policy Policy

Public Wetland Programs • Nearly 1 billion dollars invested in wetland protection and restoration in the Pacific Northwest since 1991 • NAWCA • Coastal Wetlands Program • Wetland Reserve Program • OWEB • WA SRFD