GREAT LAKES PLAYBOOK
RESILIENCE/CLIMATE ADAPTATION | PLANNING
Status: Ongoing
Communities along the Great Lakes coastline are increasingly facing challenges from coastal flooding and erosion, leading to property damage, safety risks, and economic disruptions. Recent high lake levels have highlighted these vulnerabilities. While Natural and Nature-Based Features (NNBF) offer a sustainable approach to shoreline protection by reducing flood risk and enhancing resilience, most current understanding of these features is based on ocean coasts, creating uncertainty about their effectiveness in the Great Lakes region.
To address this, the Engineering With Nature (EWN) team, in collaboration with private firms, universities, and research fellows, is developing a comprehensive guide specifically for the Great Lakes as part of the USACE Great Lakes Coastal Resiliency Study (GLCRS). This guide, referred to as the "Playbook," aims to support coastal resiliency efforts by identifying suitable NNBFs for the region.
The Playbook will define Coastal Design Units (CDUs) for the Great Lakes, categorizing the shoreline based on key environmental characteristics such as physiography, hydrology, social aspects, and ecological conditions. These CDUs will help bridge the gap between site-specific solutions and broader, transferable approaches across the region. The Playbook will provide a catalog of NNBFs suitable for various CDUs, enhancing understanding of their potential performance and increasing the confidence of federal, state, and local agencies in planning, designing, and implementing these features. This framework will facilitate the use of NNBFs and traditional engineering designs, assisting landowners and decision-makers in making informed choices for coastal protection.
Learn more:
- Read more about the study from the USACE
Client: ERDC USACE
Collaborators:
- Anchor QEA, Inc.
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Auburn University
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USACE Buffalo District
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USACE Chicago District
- USACE Detroit District
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