Accept and Adapt: A Strategy for Managing Infrastructure Subject to Sea Level and Stream Level Rise

• Published in: Public works management & policy Vol. 24; no. 1; pp. 6 - 19
• Main Author: Price, Willard
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.01.2019; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
• Subjects: Climate change; Coping; Infrastructure; Management; Natural disasters; Oceans; Prevention; Sea level; Weather; flood prevention; infrastructure; sea level rise; stream level rise
• ISSN: 1087-724X; 1552-7549
• DOI: 10.1177/1087724X18807219

Current evidence suggests that we are facing a greater likelihood of natural events that will cause disruptions and/or disasters for people, organizations and economies. These events are not really "natural disasters," just the disastrous consequences of a natural and, possibly human caused event, that leads to infrastructure failure, Data from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) chronlcle the increasing frequency in weather-related disasters in the IS over the past 36 yeas that have caused a billion or more dollars in damage. It is reasonable to conclude these increases are the early effects of global and ocean warming, changes in weather patterns, and rising water levels in Oceans and Streams. This "call for action" discusses flood prevention strategies to avoid disaster within int he context of a life cycle of infrastructure systems, introducing engineering challenges for coping with rising sea levels and higher stream flows.