the need for
Lake Michigan Coastal Resilience
Extreme precipitation events, coastal storms, and fluctuating water levels pose threats to Lake Michigan coastal communities. Flooding, erosion, and storm surge can threaten properties and impair infrastructure and other assets that are vital to the region’s economic security. Agricultural and urban runoff during heavy rain events can also impair water quality in receiving water bodies, further threatening recreation and tourism. Planning, preparing for and adapting to these and other climate change hazards can enhance community resilience and strengthen coastal economies.
LEARN ABOUT
Coastal Resilience Community Impact Project
LNRP and Water365 are working collaboratively to assist municipal and county staff in communities along the western coast of Lake Michigan to develop adaptation and resilience strategies to respond to flooding, erosion, and related climate change driven hazards.
Funded by the Fund for Lake Michigan, the Coastal Resilience Community Impact Project (CRCIP) supports communities with project planning, design, funding, and implementation of coastal resilience strategies.
Our Partner Communities Are Implementing Coastal Resiliency
Select a City Below to see their Coastal Resiliency Projects:
Our Process
WORKSHOPS
The project began with three training workshops in the fall of 2020 that focused on (1) the challenges of precipitation changes on communities; (2) steps to resilience planning; and (3) practical tools for resilience implementation such as green infrastructure, innovative technologies and financing, and municipal code and water stewardship audits.
COMMUNITY MEETINGS / PROJECT PRIORITIZATION AND FUNDING
The training workshops were followed by individualized meetings between LNRP, Water365 and staff from the participating communities to assess overall needs, share resources, prioritize projects, help to design and implement resilience planning frameworks, and align projects with potential funding.
Our team is currently working with municipal and county staff in each community to develop a list of prioritized projects, identify funding opportunities, and draft grant applications.
support and thank our
Local Partners
LNRP provides administrative and staff support to watershed groups that serve as Coastal Resilience Community Impact Project partners. These groups serve several community based functions:
An engaged citizen group acting as an advisory body.
A conduit for information flow from local, state, and regional management agencies.
A venue to raise awareness by bringing expertise to the community via seminars and work plans.
An organizing body for complementary habitat restoration projects and water quality monitoring.
Coastal Resilience Community Planning Resources
Guides, Tools, and Plans
You’ll find a number of climate resilience planning guides, tools and plans from other communities here.
Funding Coastal Resiliency
LNRP and Water365 partnered with American Rivers, WaterNow Alliance, and OneWater Econ on a series of funding and finance workshops for Wisconsin communities. The resources produced for those workshops are available here.
US Climate Resilience Toolkit Website
This website contains a large number of resources, including tools, case studies, and videos to assist organizations throughout the climate resilience planning process.
Webinar Recordings
You’ll find recordings of our CRCIP webinars here.
Coastal resiliency collective messaging initiative
The CRCIP’s Relation to LNRP’s Other Work
Fulfilling the core LNRP Mission: Cultivating Community and Stewardship from the Ledge to the Lakeshore.
Core Coastal Resiliency Messaging: Great Lakes Literacy and Resiliency Planning to Mitigate the Impacts of the Climate Crisis
Coastal Community Impact Project: Consultations Turned into Actions
EAB Mitigation: Building Community Capacity to Mitigate the Impact of the Emerald Ash Borer
Lakeshore TMDL: Engaging the Community to Improve Water Quality by Reducing Phosphorus and Sediment Loads
Coastal Ecosystem Resiliency Project: Projects that Integrate Habitat Enhancements and Water Quality Improvements
Stewardship Investment Fund: Conservation, Collaboration, Community