June 2018 ESTUARY News Magazine
Specific Stories Blurbs & Links
Teaser: Can local land use control still be a sacred pillar of American freedom?
Not when the San Francisco Bay is rising, and our homes and investments sit in the lowlands on its shore. Not everyone can move to a safer location. Not every local government can say no to a developer with a fat wallet today in order to protect at risk communities tomorrow. A seawall that’s higher in one county than another can divert flood impacts to neighbors. It won’t be fair all the way around unless someone has a bigger plan. But no regional agency seems up to the task. This summer, ESTUARY News featured three stories with different angles on the how the Bay can’t efficiently adapt to sea level rise without some regional level oversight.
1)”Permitting Made Easier” by Joe Eaton gives you the good news — regional regulators are innovating the shoreline habitat restoration permitting machine so we can build wetland buffers faster to keep us safer, courtesy Dave Pine and the Restoration Authority.
2) “Reflecting on the Rush to Resilience” by John Hart examines the results of the Resilient by Design Bay Area Challenge to answer questions like: “Will there be enough mud and money? Can every inhabited place be protected? Can our governements rise to the need?”
3) “Glimmers of Baywide Intent” by Aleta George surveys a variety of weak, if growing, regional initiatives including the new BayCAN effort to keep local governments in the drivers seat when it comes to adaptating their shorelines.
If you want to see what regional leaders think about resilience don’t miss our movie Two Way Bay!
