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What the Coast Is Worth: How a Dollar Number Is Already Funding Its Protection · How To Protect The Ocean

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  A lot of times when we talk about coastal erosion,
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  we talk about climate change and how sea level rise and storm surges
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  are really causing that erosion factor.
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  And sometimes they are. But one of the things that we don't realize that causes
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  a shoreline erosion in certain places,
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  especially in the intercoastal ways in the United States in Carolina and Florida,
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  is usually because of boat waves and boat traffic.
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  That's something we don't normally talk about.
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  We don't really think about, but it's something that can be stopped and
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  can be not necessarily boat traffic,
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  but the waves, the wake that it that boats cause can stop erosion if we
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  do it the right way. That's with natural coastal habitats and proper speed limits
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  and enforcement. We're gonna talk about all of that on today's episode of
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  the How to Protect the Ocean podcast.
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  This is what we do we talk about actionable items that we can put
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  in place as people.
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  As coastal people, as countries and states and provinces,
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  we can put those together and really make a difference.
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  That's what we talk about here on this podcast called How to Protect the Ocean.
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  If you like this kind of stuff,
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  hit that follow button. make sure you get more.
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  We do episodes Monday to Friday.
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  ~ and this has been a fun week of talking about coastal habitats.
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  We've talked about nutrients, we've talked about a lot of things.
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  But today we're gonna be talking about something that is.
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  Very, very important to ~ how we look at managing coastlines.
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  And we're gonna be talking about mangroves and marshes just as we've been talking
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  about all week, but we're also gonna be talking a lot about the different aspects
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  of coastal management and putting a price on the coastline.
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  And so I think that's that's really important.
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  So, like I said, if if we start to think about climate change all the time,
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  we always think climate change is causing every problem.
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  It's it's making things worse,
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  but it's not necessarily causing every problem.
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  And because it's such a big problem,
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  it's really hard to control the local effects.
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  But what we can control is something that's fixable,
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  is how humans behave really locally within these areas.
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  And that is one, is like this,
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  these boat wakes, And and and boat traffic.
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  And so what I want to explain here is is how like awake mechanisms work.
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  NOAA's snow's
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  Cut findings. ~ they found about half the wake heights of of the boat.
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  So as a boat moves through the water,
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  the back of the motor po pushes the water away from the boat as it tries
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  to move through the water. That that part of the water in the back of
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  the boat are the wakes of the for that the boat ~ contained.
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  The faster the boat moves, the larger the wake.
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  So the higher those waves. You see it a lot when people are ~ are water skiing,
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  And and you see those, like you can actually take jumps off of them because they're
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  so high. ~ and you can get some really height.
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  And you can it makes it more fun for for ~ water skiing,
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  which is great. I'm not a water skier,
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  I don't like that kind of stuff.
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  Everybody else who likes it, good on you,
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  but that's not for me. But people love that.
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  It's fun to watch, it's it's fun to to go into those waves.
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  But those waves, especially in areas where there's not
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  an established coastal habitat that or or maybe it's a vulnerable habitat.
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  To erosion, like maybe it's just sandy or it's it's got like some sediment there,
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  but nothing to really stop it,
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  nothing, nothing to hold the sediment together,
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  ~ like a mangrove or a salt marsh where the plants are holding the roots
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  of the plants are holding that sediment together,
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  that soil together. And so what they what they found in this these snows
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  cut findings is that the the the wakes of the boats or half of
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  the wakes heights beat the biggest wind waves.
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  So, like if if you look at if you measure all these heights over a certain time
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  and you look at half of them were bigger than ~ the waves caused by wind,
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  which would be considered something like ~ like like climate change storms
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  or things like that. and and so like slow slow plowing speeds through throws like
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  the worst wakes of all. So as you start to slow plowing where
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  the bow of the boat is up in the air,
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  it it almost it makes it makes it worse.
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  So what I what I want to really punch home here is that these wakes are mechanical.
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  They are done by a machine. They were done by a motor.
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  It's not done by climate ch like climate driven storms or climate driven winds.
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  And it's happening right now on the waterways as you listen to this.
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  and this is something that can be cleared up and can be managed appropriately.
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  Now, if you don't know who I am,
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  I'm a marine biologist. I use I've studied the oceans for quite some time.
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  I'm not an expert in anything,
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  but I'm a bit of a generalist all around.
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  And I cover this kind of stuff because I feel like it's important for
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  us to know that activities that we can do to reduce
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  our ~ influence on these types of shorelines.
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  And so when you have intact
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  habitats like mangroves or or salt marshes or seagrasses,
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  that's a measurable defense, We have this these defenses up.
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  And there's a a study with by Dowdy and all that looks at the numbers and it's
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  up to 90% of the wave height reduction from mangroves and marshes,
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  67% wave energy reduction from marsh and oyster reef against boat wakes
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  specifically. So there's an engineering method of doing this by making sure that
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  we have
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  These complex habitats that provide this this this ruggedness
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  that will when the ~ the energy of the waves move into the area,
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  it gets it gets taken out. ~ that energy gets taken out and it dissipates over this
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  ruggedness of like an oyster reef or mangrove roots or or what have you.
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  Right. And so that's that's important.
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  That's part of nature. And plus you get nature along the sides of this.
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  these intercoastal highways in these areas where they're exposed to waves
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  of boats all the time. and so once you have the understanding of what this
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  can cause, right, you can use it,
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  you can measure it. And that's fundable.
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  when you look at the blue carbon and how much that's worth,
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  that's worth like globally, it's worth
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  191 billion dollars. on Tuesday,
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  I talked about an example where they lined the coastline with natural habitat,
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  and they were able to save $17,000 per acre,
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  and I think that's an important aspect in in that I mentioned on Tuesday.
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  Because I feel like that's something that that really puts a a tangible number
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  to what it costs to restore, So you you're looking at it cost seventeen thousand
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  dollars per hundred acres. but it was protected.
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  And the the amount of protection saves a lot in the future.
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  and I think that's like a smaller scale.
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  You have the global, then you the smaller scale.
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  But then there's there's methods to fund.
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  these types of of coastal habitats.
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  And it doesn't necessarily have to be a salt marsh or doesn't necessarily have
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  to be a mangrove. It could be a coral reef.
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  In fact, there's a a really great example in Mexico where there was looked
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  at like the resystem protecting Mexico's ~ Maya Riviera ~ was was really
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  was really important. it's it's definitely,
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  it's not a mangrove that this was that this had.
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  It was a coral reef.
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  And it's something that's that's very important.
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  So, the coastline for the Mexico's Riviera Maya was was known
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  to be valuable informally for years,
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  it shields around $10 billion in annual tourism revenue for the region.
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  But the the the valuable part,
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  isn't the same as like
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  what can be funded. So after a storm damaged the reef,
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  there was no fast way to act to restore it.
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  And there's no way to get dedicated repairs.
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  So the people couldn't pay for it.
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  People couldn't go out and do something for it,
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  And so, the restoration was weighted on like organizations who do
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  it themselves who fundraise. And that's difficult.
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  Fundraising is almost impossible these days.
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  Now in 2018, the Nature Conservancy,
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  the Quintana Roo state government,
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  local hotels
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  And the insurer named Swiss RE,
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  I think it's Swiss RE or Swiss Re,
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  I'm not sure exactly how you pronounce it,
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  They set up a coastal zone management trust.
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  Now, hotels already paid the tax for the beach usage rights in the in that area,
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  because it's all resorts. And that tax now funds this parametric insurance policy
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  on the reef itself.
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  So it's a policy that pays out automatically once wind speeds in
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  a defined area cross a certain threshold.
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  So there's no lengthy damage assessment that's required first.
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  It's right away, it happens. And as an example,
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  in 2020, Hurricane Delta ~ hit the area.
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  And that that policy triggered its first payout $850,000 within days.
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  So they had volunteer brigades already assigned.
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  And they used it to stabilize over 2,150 uprooted coral colonies
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  and reattach more than 13,500 coral fragments within three months.
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  And then the neighboring towns got wind of it and they we're gonna come
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  up with our own model, for these volunteer brigades.
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  And it's now it's expanding into Belize,
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  Guatemala, and Honduras because working so well.
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  Mangroves are named as the next planned expansion of the same insurance framework
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  because they realize look, this is the funny thing about insurance groups.
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  and insurance companies, they know what protects a coastline.
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  They know what will reduce damage.
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  And the fact that they have they have an incentive to ensure that these areas don't
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  have to put out a payout, it's cheaper for them to ensure that there's
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  a healthy coastline, whether that's mangroves or that's marshes
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  or that's seagrasses or that's a coral reef.
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  They know that having an intact and healthy coastal habitat complex that
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  has all of those is really important to
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  The structure and safety and security of that coastline.
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  this is not a fact of like this is a charitable work.
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  This is working actively to protect the people who are paying in insurance
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  to make sure that their business,
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  their activities don't stop. Because if you lost that coastline,
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  or if that coastline got eroded,
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  all that beachfront is gone. All those resorts that will not make money.
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  People go for the beaches.
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  And and they're already having enough problems with with sargasm to have this aspect
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  to help them out with this coastal security is huge.
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  And to have the money already saved up so that when it comes when
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  and the policy just triggers it in a response right away.
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  So within three months, they're back up and they feel safer.
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  And I think this is what it requires to ensure that we we've talked
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  all week about how.
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  Making sure that coastal habitats can sequester that nitrogen and the carbon,
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  making sure that healthy coastal reefs are there to act as the
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  the like nature's kidneys to make sure nutrients don't get out into
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  the ocean and into the coastline to cause all this green water
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  and disrupt coastal ecosystems,
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  which would cause a lot of death,
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  would cause red tide, all this kind of stuff.
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  And then, yesterday we talked about,
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  black like making sure that these like like from like the as example
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  of the Blackwater ~ area, making sure that the marshlands can move back inland
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  if there's if there's a problem with sea level rise.
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  So making like this is all what happens when we manage a coastline properly.
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  The policies need to be in place right off the bat.
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  Today's story is an example of that with Quintana Roo.
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  Making sure that we have a policy that triggers the funds like right away.
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  Not an assessment done first, not waiting a year for it to happen.
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  The money gets triggered. The policy gets triggered,
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  the money gets given, volunteer brigades go out and the the pay the payments done
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  to restore this area. It is expensive.
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  Almost a million dollars to restore parts of a reef is hugely expensive.
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  And and so all week we've been talking about managing the coastline
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  by looking at specific habitats.
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  This happens with all habitats all around the world.
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  A lot of places don't have these policies in place or don't have
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  the ability to trigger the money to come out.
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  And it requires community to actively investigate these types
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  of setbacks or predict these types of things that are happening to manage that,
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  making sure that, coastal habitats can migrate back in case sea level rise takes
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  them over.
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  All these things, making sure that there's money available for restoration after
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  a storm. Make sure that the ~ the the habitats are healthy,
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  make sure that at the end of a pipe of an industry,
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  it's down to a specific number for nitrogen and phosphorus,
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  those nutrients, so that you don't trigger a a bloom,
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  along the coastal area that could trigger a red tide bloom.
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  All this happens through management activities.
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  Sometimes you just can't.
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  Allow, nature to recover on its own because we've damaged it so much.
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  And there's so many combinations of things that can happen that will take it out.
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  And if you set up the habitat properly and you manage the habitat properly,
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  and there's areas of restoration,
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  identifying areas of vulnerability,
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  working with the community, ensuring that human disturbances like boat wakes
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  and things like that are taken out.
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  Well, now you've got a a properly managed area.
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  Whether it's you call it a marine protected area or a managed area,
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  you're managing that coastline properly.
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  And and so what I want you to think about is if you live along a coastal area,
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  you live near a marina, you live near a mangrove,
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  you live near a marsh, make sure that,
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  these areas are managing those properly.
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  That's there's enforcement in in like slow speed or no wake zones,
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  right, near marsh and mangrove shorelines.
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  It's a mechanical mechanism that can be controlled.
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  And and this is like one lit like this these types of calls to action
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  by calling local marinas, calling harbor authorities,
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  or calling your town council, that's one mechanism you can use as
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  an individual and you can push on it.
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  To make sure, like, not to where the boat wakes are in the habitats protection.
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  That's where they meet. That's where you want to hit.
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  That's where you want to focus your energy on.
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  That's where we start to see real policy happen.
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  This this series, this week was all about nutrient pollution ~ that
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  has a natural filter. And we know that red tide has a tracking tool,
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  so we don't have to be exposed to it.
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  we know that sea level ride has a a moving target,
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  these habitats can actually chase.
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  And now coastal erosion has a real dollar value attached to it so that
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  it can get fixed.
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  none of this here is like guesswork because of major problems with climate change
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  or anything like that. It's about engineering and finance.
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  And in a lot of places it's already working to man like the management
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  is already working. And and that is helping to bring back areas like Tampa Bay,
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  to protect areas like Quintana Roo,
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  to make sure that the future of the Blackwater Park.
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  will continue because we'll have migration corridors where these marshes
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  can still be healthy and can be out of the way from of danger.
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  And and that's the episode. That's what that's what we talk about here.
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  We talked about a lot of stuff.
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  I'd love to hear you your thoughts about this episode as well as
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  the other episodes this week about coastal habitats,
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  about nutrients, about carbon,
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  all these things that are really important they have fixes.
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  And and that's where I want you to get is like you can
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  Take a bite out of this. You can actually have make a difference in this
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  by ensuring that policies are in place locally to protect those areas.
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  And you'll be well off for that.
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  I guarantee you, especially if you live in those areas or you don't live
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  in those areas. Maybe you visit that area.
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  That's that's what's really gonna help.
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  So that's it for the episode for today.
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  And of course, this week, tune in on Monday because we have a really great episode
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  for you on Monday.
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  We have ~ Anupa Ahsoka, who's gonna be talking about how
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  the California Marine Protected Area System is failing the people in
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  the way they are implementing adaptive management.
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  And that could be fixed. Again,
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  another fix that can happen. But we're gonna talk about some of
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  the problems and some of the recommendations that her and her organization fish on,
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  as well as her collaborators, really have for this marine protected area process
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  and making sure that they approach it from a scientific angle.
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  and maybe that will reduce a lot of the conflicts that are happening there.
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  That's on Monday. We're gonna talk all about marine protected areas for
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  the rest of the week on that day,
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  on that week. And I can't wait to ~ be able to provide that to you.
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  So thank you so much for joining us on this episode of the How to Protect
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  the Ocean podcast and all this week.
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  I'm your host, Andrew Lewin. Have a great day.
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  We'll talk to you next time in happy conservation.