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NCBIWA 2007, The Annual Conference

Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Sea Level Rise, But Were Afraid To Ask*
*And Other Timely Topics
By Tom Jarrett, Conference Chair

By all accounts, the NCBIWA annual conference held at the Courtyard by Marriott in Carolina Beach was a huge success. The theme “All You Wanted to Know About Sea Level Rise, But Were Afraid to Ask (and Other Timely Topics)”, attracted over 150 participants including local government officials, state and federal agency representatives, and interested citizens concerned with the future of our coast. The conference was well covered by the media including the Weather Channel, local television stations, and statewide newspapers.

The attendees were treated to a wide variety of talks ranging from the prospects of future climate and sea level change to the impacts of the predicted changes on our coastal economy, storm frequency and intensity, and well being of our coastal development. Rudi Rudolph laid the groundwork for the conference summarizing what in know about past climate and sea level changes and factors that are primarily at work causing such changes. Stan Riggs, Dave Mallinson, and Steve Culver from East Carolina University discussed their research on the impacts ofsea level rise on the Outer Banks and possible future conditions should sea level rise accelerate as some are predicting while Chris Dumas, UNCW, and Paul Bin, ECU summarized the findings of their study on the impacts of global warming on the economy of coastal North Carolina.

Jeff Williams, a marine geologist from the US Geological Survey expressed skepticism that coastal communities would be able to continue to respond to sea level rise using beach nourishment given the limited sand resources available throughout most of the state. He suggested communities should begin to plan for strategic retreat from the coast. Margaret Davidson, Director NOAA Coastal Service Center located in Charleston, SC, who was also the keynote speaker at the Tuesday’s awards luncheon, warned federal funding support for coastal protection projects would become increasingly more difficult to obtain stating “The federal debt is rising faster than the rising faster than sea level.” Steve Dye, Marlowe & Company, echoed this same sentiment predicting a 2008 Water Resource Development Act will not pass until after the November elections if at all.

On a brighter note, John Sutherland, NC Division of Water Resources, discussed the State’s efforts to close the funding gap by describing State grants that are available to help maintain coastal waterways and assist local communities in funding shore protection projects. John also provided an update on the Beach and Inlet Management Plan that just got underway this year. The study is currently in the data collection stage but will eventually develop management strategies and priorities that will assist the State in its future management decisions.

All of the presentations are available online.

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