Coastal resilience initiative planning is Dec. 11 topic
The Sussex Preservation Coalition will meet from 7 to 8:30 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 11, at Lewes Public Library, 111 Adams Ave., Lewes.
Delaware Center for the Inland Bays officials are soliciting community ideas for a multi-decade resiliency plan.
The meeting is free and open to the public, and a Zoom link will be available at sussexpreservationcoalition.org. Attendees are asked to register in advance by emailing spcde.org@gmail.com.
Melina Vella, CIB data coordinator, will explain the organization’s collaborative initiative with Southern Delaware residents and organizations to develop a shared vision of what the Inland Bays will be like in 50 years. Vella also is project manager for the initiative, called the Southern Delaware Coastal Resilience Plan.
Through science-based research, restoration, education, outreach, public policy and advocacy, the Center for the Inland Bays seeks to preserve, protect and restore Delaware’s Inland Bays and their watershed.
“From road flooding to loss of wildlife habitat, we hope to explore the environmental priorities of the communities of southern Delaware,” said Vella. “Ideally, we want to find ways to support all of our watershed communities in combating these issues by doing what we do best – implementation of nature-based solutions and local policy changes.”
The three Sussex County Inland Bays – Rehoboth, Indian River and Little Assawoman – include marshes, wetlands and tributaries where freshwater flows to meet ocean saltwater behind a barrier island. These waterways create more than $4.5 billion in economic activity annually. A 2021 center report on the bays’ health gave them a D grade for the pollution runoff and habitat loss that have turned once-clear waters murky, leading to loss of native grasses and wildlife.
“The Sussex Preservation Coalition salutes the center for undertaking this ambitious and necessary project,” said Jill Hicks, SPC president. “We urge our SPC members and local residents to join in this effort to restore the health of these waterways that are so unique and vital to our communities.”
