The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Coastal Management (DCM) is awarding grants to 15 coastal communities for technical assistance in risk assessment and resilience planning work through the Resilient Coastal Communities Program (RCCP). A total of $1.1 million will be provided for completion of Phases 1 and 2 of the RCCP. DCM will contract with nine third-party service providers for direct technical assistance services to the localities.
“These grant awards are an investment in the future of our coastal communities, to support their resilience planning and capacity,” said Secretary Elizabeth S. Biser. “We are pleased to work with our local partners to identify and prioritize projects to address flooding and other coastal hazards and help protect the public and economic health of their communities.”
Communities receiving technical assistance:
- Ahoskie
- Atlantic Beach
- Aulander
- Burgaw
- Carteret County (Cedar Island focus)
- Creswell
- Edenton
- Elizabeth City
- Holly Ridge
- Kitty Hawk
- Ocean Isle Beach
- Pasquotank County (Newland Township focus)
- Plymouth
- Washington County (Scuppernong River Basin; Creswell focus)
- Washington Park
Service Providers selected by DCM will support the development of the communities’ Resilience Strategies, working directly with local governments and the Community Action Teams created within each participating locality.
Service Providers:
- Dewberry Engineers Inc.
- Kleinfelder Inc.
- Mid-East Commission
- Moffatt & Nichol Inc.
- Rummel, Klepper, and Kahl, LLP (RK&K)
- Stewart Inc.
- SWCA Environmental Consulting
- Weston & Sampson (WSE)
- WSP USA
Community applications were scored across seven criteria, including their level of risk exposure to vulnerable population and critical assets, their economic status and need, and their internal capacity and momentum with related efforts. Service provider applications were scored across ten different criteria, including their experience in resilience planning; identifying and mapping critical assets; natural infrastructure and socially vulnerable populations; experience conducting risk and vulnerability assessments; implementing nature-based solutions; analyzing coastal hazards and future conditions; project identification and prioritization; community engagement; stakeholder facilitation; and their administrative capacity.
The RCCP supports communities in developing and implementing locally driven Resilience Strategies, including projects or activities which reduce the impacts of coastal hazards like flooding and storms. The initiative helps local governments to overcome barriers to coastal resilience and adaptation planning, boost local government capacity, and support a proactive, sustainable, and equitable approach to planning and project implementation.
The program is implemented over four phases:
1) Community Engagement and Risk & Vulnerability Assessment
2) Planning, Project Selection, and Prioritization
3) Project Engineering and Design
4) Implementation
The RCCP receives funding through a combination of state and federal sources. For more information about the Resilient Coastal Communities program: go to the DCM website.
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