Building BI's Coastal Resilience

Resources from the Community Learning and Engagement Event

Click here to read Summary and Key Takeaways

Corn Neck Road Resilience

Town beach parking lot design concept GZA.png

Click on the image above to access the PDF of GZA's Presentation on Solutions and Recommendations for Conceptual Designs

Click here for GZA Project Website

GZA Presentation -Vulnerability Analysis and Survey Results- May 15, 2025

GZA Presentation -Mitigation Strategy Discussion and Conceptual Designs - August 4, 2025

Mapping Climate Impacts on BI

STORMTOOLS

NOAA Sea Level Rise Viewer

National Wetlands Inventory

Sea Level Affecting Marshes Modeling (SLAMM)

Town of New Shoreham GIS Site (FEMA flood zones, plat, zoning, contour and soil maps)

Cumulative Block Island Climate Map: not yet published

Click on the image above to access the toolbox for mapping climate impacts on Block Island

Screenshot_8-8-2025_115615_www.crmc.ri.gov.jpeg

Click on the image above to access the Sea Level Affecting Marshes Model maps and project information

Protecting the Great Salt Pond and Salt Marshes

BI Salt Marsh Monitoring by The Nature Conservancy

Water Quality Testing by the Committee for the Great Salt Pond:

Marsh Migration Mapping:

Click on the frames to learn more about salt marshes on Block Island.

Homeowner Concerns: Well Intrusion and Failing Septic Systems

Wastewater Management | New Shoreham, RI - Official Website

Block Island Map-Treatment-Zones-PDF

URI's Onsite Wastewater Resource Center: Community – Onsite Wastewater Resource Center

Septic & Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems | Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management

EPA's Homebuyer's Brochure and Guide to Septic Systems

EPA's Climate Adaptation and Saltwater Intrusion

Click on the image above to view Tom Boving (Professor of Env. Hydrogeology at URI) presentation on water tables on Block Island

Resilience Solutions and Partnerships

Thanks to numerous partnerships and efforts from dedicated islanders, we have a wealth of connections and resources to assist us in building Block Island's resilience. Check out some below:

An Introduction to Climate Change Presentation based on the book Drawdown by Paul Hawken - slides created by Socha Cohen

Images to the right and above created by Socha Cohen with the assistance of GZA and Bryan Oakley (Eastern CT State University)

Click here to view Bryan Oakley's research on Bluff Erosion on Block Island

Ideas for the Beach House - collected from the public by the Coastal Resilience Committee members

Block Island is URI's Coastal Insitute's newest Climate Response Demonstration Site - with more information found at Climate Response Demonstration Sites – Coastal Institute

Block Island went through the Municipal Resilience Program's process and workshop to identify hazards and prioritize further action on building resilience. View the summary of findings by clicking here.

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Return to TNC BI Homepage