The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law—–with funds leveraged from the Inflation Reduction Act—–is helping to revitalize coastal communities and make them more resilient.
The legislation provides historic investments in coastal protection and restoration that will increase community resilience to climate change and extreme weather events, and improve how we manage our ocean resources.
NOAA’s Office for Coastal Management will administer $832 million from these funds over five years via four programs:
- National Coastal Zone Management Program
- National Estuarine Research Reserve System
- National Coastal Resilience Fund
- Regional Ocean Partnerships
Projects selected for the first year were awarded in 2023 and links to the project descriptions can be found below. Approximately $109 million was awarded to support restoration and conservation projects through the National Coastal Zone Management Program and National Estuarine Research Reserve System. At least eight of these projects—totaling more than $20 million—will be carried out in partnership with or directly by tribes, including acquisition and conservation of ecological and culturally significant ancestral lands.
In partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the National Coastal Resilience Fund invested approximately $144 million in 96 projects using these funds, along with their annual appropriation, for projects that will help communities prepare for increasing coastal flooding and more intense storms, while improving thousands of acres of coastal habitats. These enhancements to fish and wildlife habitats also help protect communities from coastal hazards.
In addition to these restoration and conservation projects, approximately $21 million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funds was awarded to support regional ocean partnership projects and data sharing, including four awards to tribes to enhance their ability to engage with the regional ocean partnerships.
Photo of lighthouse at Cape Meares, Oregon is by Ehren Beckwith from Pixabay.