Program 2

Risk and Resilience in Coastal WA

This program is led by Associate Professor Abbie Rogers, in her capacity as WA Premier’s Early-to-mid Career Fellow. It aims to develop a prioritisation framework that will help coastal managers to identify which adaptation options will provide the best outcomes to increase resilience against the impacts of coastal hazards.

ABOUT THE PROGRAM

Recognising that the frequency and intensity of coastal hazard events is increasing globally, coastal managers are grappling with how they can prioritise their investments in coastal management to ensure protection of important coastal assets, while trying to do so cost-effectively. Selecting the right management actions depends on a number of things, including: • What assets are at risk and in need of protection, including whether natural or built. • Stakeholder preferences for managing the various assets that are at risk. • The current state of knowledge and technology regarding coastal protection structures, including traditional engineered structures and nature-based coastal protection methods. • How likely different actions are to succeed given the environmental conditions at the site, and the influence of other dynamic processes occurring in the surrounding land and seascape. • The financial resources available to implement management. Acknowledging that managers are constrained by the financial resources they have available when making decisions, it is important for them to select management options that deliver benefits to coastal stakeholders. Those stakeholders will include coastal communities and recreational users, and the benefits may not come solely from protection of built infrastructure but also through the social and environmental values associated with protecting recreational spaces and natural ecosystems. This research program will deliver an economic prioritisation tool that will enable coastal managers to weigh up the benefits and costs of different coastal protection and adaptation projects. It will explicitly integrate not only the financial costs and benefits of those projects, but also the social and environmental ones by linking to a coastal community values database that is being developed in related work led by Dr Rogers. The understanding of socio-ecological dynamics established through Prof. Cumming’s research program will inform how risk is addressed in the prioritisation tool, in terms of how broader landscape processes may influence the probability of different projects delivering the required coastal protection benefits.

PROGRAM RESOURCES

These resources can be shared with colleagues in reference to this program. Additional materials will be added as the program progresses.

The Coastal Resilience Program 2 Summary flyer outlines further details about the scope and various outputs that will be delivered to achieve the program 2 outcomes.

The Community Information flyer is a call for volunteers to participate in the research program, providing the key details about what is involved.

This video recording is an introduction for people to better understand economic valuation and prioritisation for coastal adaptation.

SUPPORTING RESEARCH

Coastal Visions Project

This project 'A New Vision for Coastal Resilience: Engaging Communities through Art to Design a Transformative Future' is using arts-based approaches to engage with coastal communities and envision innovative solutions for a more resilient coastal future.

FUNDING: UWA Oceans Institute's Better Oceans Program

Go to Project Page

Coastal Values Project

This project uses non-market valuation methods to understand how people value coastal assets and ensures these values are reflected in coastal planning and decision-making processes.

FUNDING: CoastWA (via WA Government's Department of Planning, Lands & Heritage and Department of Transport)