RESILIENT COMMUNITIES & ECONOMIES
Coastal communities provide vital economic, social, and recreational opportunities for thousands of Louisianans, but population migration, especially since Hurricanes Rita and Katrina, have transformed the state’s coastal landscapes and intensified demand on finite coastal resources. These changes are placing tremendous pressure on coastal lands, water supplies and traditional ways of life. To accommodate more people and activity, and to balance growing demands on coastal resources, new policies, institutional capacities and management approaches to guide the preservation and use of coastal and ocean resources must be developed. Additionally, sea level rise, the increased number and intensity of coastal storms, the ongoing threat of oil spills and other natural and human hazards are putting more people and property at risk along Louisiana’s coast, with major implications for human safety and the economic and environmental health of coastal areas. It is essential that residents of coastal communities understand these risks and learn what they can do both to reduce their vulnerability and to respond quickly and effectively when destructive events occur. Louisiana Sea Grant uses its integrated research, training and technical assistance capabilities and its presence in coastal communities to play a major role in helping local citizens, decision-makers and industries plan for hazardous events and optimize their ability to respond to and rebuild after a disaster.
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