As the dangers of a changing climate are at the forefront of the national conscience after Hurricane Helene, planners and researchers from the Cape and Islands packed into the Martha’s Vineyard Film Center on Oct. 1 to present their work on coastal resilience.
Flooding risk was a focus throughout the daylong gathering of the Martha’s Vineyard Coastal Conference, an annual event shared between Nantucket and the Vineyard and organized by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Sea Grant program, partnering with the Martha’s Vineyard Commission, the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah), and the Trustees of Reservations.
Researchers and policymakers gathered for a number of workshops and forums throughout the day to discuss a range of issues, from improving local infrastructure to improving resilience on a regional level.
Liz Durkee, climate change coordinator at the Martha’s Vineyard Commission, helped organize this year’s conference. “It was very timely,” she said. “I think it’s so extremely valuable to have these conferences on the Island, because it’s difficult to get off and go to the Cape to learn these things.”
Durkee’s presentation focused on the many groups on-Island working together on climate issues, which she said were more than 40 groups, in addition to town committees. Durkee highlighted the work of groups from Polly Hill Arboretum to the high school’s Protect Your Environment Club, and looked ahead to goals such as reaching 100 percent renewable energy by 2040.
She also highlighted local work on a healthier ecosystem through a state grant. This involved updating the Vineyard’s and Nantucket’s vegetation and wildlife corridor maps, thanks to work on the ground by groups like BiodiversityWorks, Polly Hill, the Great Pond Foundation, and Sheriff’s Meadow. The grant also went toward developing native planting guides for landscapers, nurseries, and homeowners.
Speaking after the conference, Durkee was especially thankful for presentations from the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) and Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe.
“I think [these] were critical, because the Wampanoag have 10,000 years of history and relationship with the land and the water, and I think their perspective is so valuable to what we’re trying to do,” she said.
The Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) is a sponsor of the conference, and a presentation by its natural resource director, Bret Stearns, covered his department’s efforts to monitor water and air quality, as well as dredge local beaches, after last winter’s trio of severe storms.
“If anyone has ozone alerts — it shows up on your phone and says, ‘Hey, it’s a bad air day’ — one-third of that data actually comes from Aquinnah. It comes from our laboratory,” he said.
Stearns’ department also works to protect threatened wildlife, especially the alarmingly low herring population in Menemsha–Squibnocket Pond Complex and across the Island. Stearns shared the latest herring count on Tuesday: The population in the ponds, despite a historic peak of 750,000 to 1 million, was counted at around 12,000 this year.
Stearns said he was grateful to share his department’s work.
“Any opportunity to let people know what the tribe is working on is a great opportunity,” he said. “People are a little less aware of what we are working on, and what we have to provide. People weren’t aware of services we provide with water quality, air quality, and the role we play in the larger part of resiliency.”
Oak Bluffs assistant town administrator Wendy Brough did not present on Tuesday, but was impressed by presentations on coastal resiliency in Woods Hole and Nantucket. She noted that her town could look to off-Island examples for cohesive planning and public engagement.
“We have a lot of information and studies done that inform us of the vulnerabilities of coastal infrastructure, from the harbor to hospital roads,” Brough said. “What I found interesting was the public engagement aspect … which was that you can’t make any decisions without public buy-in. There is huge money associated with all these projects, so we need to educate, so the public can understand about funding, and needs and priorities of all pending projects.”
“The work they are doing in Aquinnah with sustainable, green, and natural infrastructure was fascinating,” she added. “We’d love to do something like that, and work with the shellfish department on clean water strategies.”
Edgartown conservation agent Jane Varkonda presented her town’s months-long effort this year to repair South Beach and Norton Point after this winter’s storms.
She was grateful for a presentation by Leah Hill of Nantucket, and was looking ahead to work to address flooding in downtown Edgartown: “I think the talk that [she] gave was great, and pertinent to downtown access to the Chappy Ferry and flooding. You could’ve almost exchanged her talk on how we get people to the Chappy Ferry. We don’t always have to reinvent the wheel. We can see what other towns are doing.”
Varkonda also noted Nantucket presenters mentioning the help of Dutch consultants in dealing with coastal issues. “People from Europe deal with water and transportation issues a lot more than we do,” she said.
Stearns, speaking on Wednesday, highlighted a strong turnout. “I think it’s drawn in a wider audience every year,” he said. “This year it had representatives from Nantucket, and federal properties managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. These events are crucial to really have open discussions about what other agencies are working on, and what progress they’ve made, and to see what different organizations have in common toward this common goal.
“I think it was obvious yesterday that there is barely a town or jurisdiction left that isn’t suffering the consequences of resiliency issues,” he added.
