Rep. Tina Spears (D-Charlestown, Sout鈥媓鈥嬧�� Kingstown, New Shoreham, W鈥媏ster鈥嬧�媗y鈥嬧��) introduced 鈥� a bill to improve coastal resiliency 鈥� in the Rhode Island House of Representatives Jan. 5. The bill mandates the creation of a coastal resiliency plan by June 30, 2025.
The plan will outline 鈥渟trategies and necessary investments鈥� to prepare for and address the effects of rising sea levels on Rhode Island communities, Spears wrote in an email to The Herald.
鈥淩hode Island has an erosional coast,鈥� said Laura Dwyer, information coordinator for the RI Coastal Resources Management Council. 鈥淥ver time, coastal property owners are losing the land in front of their homes to the ocean.鈥�
According to Topher Hamblett, executive director of , 鈥渋n urban areas, popular places like India Point Park are more frequently flooded and eroding,鈥� he wrote in an email to The Herald 鈥淚n suburban areas, neighborhoods that were built along the water鈥檚 edge are flooding more frequently. On the South Coast, we are seeing entire dunes systems disappear.鈥�
鈥淩ising seas are causing salt marshes 鈥� the nurseries of life in estuarine and coastal environments 鈥� to deteriorate and sink,鈥� he added. 鈥淲e will lose most of the marshes we have.鈥�
For Spears, Rhode Island must prepare for inevitable changes to its coast. 鈥淭his must include a statewide strategy that leverages federal funds and supports local municipalities,鈥� she wrote.
Coastal resiliency projects can involve 鈥渘atural green infrastructure such as dunes or reefs, hard infrastructure such as sea walls or elevation or retreat and relocation strategies,鈥� Spears explained, noting that these initiatives must be deployed in ways that are appropriate for different communities.
Spears shared that she and Sen. Victoria Gu (D-Westerly, Charlestown, South Kingstown) are currently working to get support from environmental agencies and academics for the bill. 鈥淟egislation is rarely successful without a concerted effort from the experts on the policy and legislators whose communities are impacted,鈥� she wrote.
The bill itself doesn鈥檛 outline a plan, instead mandating the creation of one, which, according to Spears, should allow for a more extensive assessment of the issue before the state makes an investment decision.
Hamblett believes that this bill 鈥渃an serve as a catalyst for real, effective resilience planning in the state.鈥�
鈥淲e must begin to prepare and take care of our communities鈥� to effectively address climate change-related issues, Spears wrote. 鈥淚f we act today, we will be prepared for what is to come.鈥�
The bill to the House Environment and Natural Resources Committee. According to a from the Rhode Island General Assembly, Gu will soon introduce the bill to the Senate.
Avani Ghosh is a Metro Editor covering politics & justice and community & activism. She is a sophomore from Ohio studying Health & Human Biology and International & Public Affairs. She is an avid earl grey enthusiast and can be found making tea in her free time.
