Final Memo for Protecting Cultural Resources in the Face of Climate Change
Dates
Publication Date
2018-03-26
Summary
This project brings cultural resource management into local and regional decision contexts for climate change planning. Cultural resources hold multiple and diverse values to local communities, visitors and the public. Yet, sea level rise and episodic storm events threaten many coastal cultural resources. Strategies for climate adaptation need to emerge from values-based decision processes that enable evaluations of the vulnerability and uniqueness of resources on a landscape. Such efforts will facilitate the prioritization of specific cultural resource management actions (e.g., move, elevate, stabilize, or document a resource). This project used a structured decision-making (SDM) process with National Park Service (NPS) personnel [...]
Summary
This project brings cultural resource management into local and regional decision contexts for climate
change planning. Cultural resources hold multiple and diverse values to local communities, visitors
and the public. Yet, sea level rise and episodic storm events threaten many coastal cultural resources.
Strategies for climate adaptation need to emerge from values-based decision processes that enable
evaluations of the vulnerability and uniqueness of resources on a landscape. Such efforts will
facilitate the prioritization of specific cultural resource management actions (e.g., move, elevate,
stabilize, or document a resource). This project used a structured decision-making (SDM) process
with National Park Service (NPS) personnel and other key stakeholders to develop and pilot test a
decision support tool at Cape Lookout National Seashore. The decision support tool enables park
managers to visualize optimal strategies for adapting historic buildings to current and projected
flooding and erosion impacts under various financial scenarios.
