Climate Risk in the Seacoast (C-RiSe)

Climate Risk in the Seacoast (C-RiSe): Assessing Vulnerability of Municipal Assets and Resources to Climate Change

Climate Risk in the Seacoast (C-RiSe): Assessing Vulnerability of Municipal Assets and Resources to Climate Change is a project that will provide Great Bay municipalities with maps and assessments of flood impacts to road and transportation assets, critical facilities and infrastructure, and natural resources associated with projected increases in storm surge, sea level and precipitation. The project will engage the following municipalities in RPC’s region – Newfields, Exeter, Stratham, Greenland and Newington – and the following municipalities in Strafford Regional Planning Commission’s region – Rollinsford, Dover, Madbury, Durham and Newmarket.

The project is comprised of several components described below.

• Vulnerability Assessments - A vulnerability assessment that quantifies and maps impacts to transportation systems, critical facilities and infrastructure, and natural resources will be conducted for each municipality in order to provide a broad overview of the potential risk and vulnerability of municipal assets and resources resulting from projected increases in storm surge, sea level and precipitation. Water levels for sea-level rise (SLR) and sea-level rise combined with storm surge (SS) scenarios will be mapped for each municipality. Scenarios evaluated will include 1.7 feet, 4.0 feet and 6.3 feet of sea-level rise and these values on combined with a 100-year storm surge.
• Culvert Analysis -Modeling will be developed to assess culvert hydrology, hydraulic capacity, and aquatic organism passage at various flows under projected climatic conditions. Modeling results will enable municipalities to identify and categorize culverts for replacement that have inadequate flow capacity and/or present barriers to passage of aquatic organisms.
• Hazard Mitigation Planning - Outreach and technical assistance will be provided to each municipality in order to inform municipal leaders about future flood risks and incorporate vulnerability assessment results and adaptation strategies into local planning efforts. Municipal vulnerability assessment reports will be prepared for potential inclusion in local hazard mitigation plans.

Municipal Vulnerability Assessment Reports and Map Sets

Great Bay Region Vulnerability Assessment

Exeter Vulnerability Assessment Report

Newfields Vulnerability Assessment Report

Stratham Vulnerability Assessment Report

Greenland Vulnerability Assessment Report

Newington Vulnerability Assessment Report

The project concluded in Spring 2017.

Partner Organizations: New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services Coastal Program, NH GRANIT, Strafford Regional Planning Commission and UNH Stormwater Center.

The C-RiSe project is funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration under the Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) Enhancement Program Projects of Special Merit for FY 2015, authorized under Section 309 of the CZMA (16 U.S.C. § 1456b)