Low-Regrets Incrementalism: Land Use Planning Adaptation to Accelerating Sea Level Rise in Florida's Coastal Communities. (September 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Butler, William H.; Deyle, Robert E.; Mutnansky, Cassidy
• Is Part Of: Journal of planning education and research. Volume 36:Number 3(2016:Autumn)
• Page Start: 319
• Page End: 332
• Publication Date: 2016-09
• Subjects: natural hazards planning -- climate change adaptation -- coastal resilience -- uncertainty -- adaptive management; Regional planning -- Study and teaching -- United States -- Periodicals; City planning -- Study and teaching -- United States -- Periodicals; 307.12
• DOI: 10.1177/0739456X16647161
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0739-456X

Abstract

Sea level rise is one of the climate change effects most amenable to adaptation planning as the impacts are familiar and the nature of the phenomenon is unambiguous. Yet, significant uncertainties remain. Using a normative framework of adaptive management and natural hazards planning, we examine how coastal communities in Florida are planning in the face of accelerating sea level rise through analysis of planning documents and interviews with planners. We clarify that communities are taking a low-regrets incremental approach with increasingly progressive measures motivated by confidence in planning intelligence and direct experience with impacts attributable to sea level rise.