ResilientWoodsHole has held its first set of meetings where it engaged residents, business owners, employees, and other stakeholders in Woods Hole from 9 areas in Woods Hole.

Several main themes were identified during the neighborhood working groups:

• • Need for collaboration between town, institutions, and community on the long-term vision of Woods Hole
  • Need for changes in regulation to help with climate resilience action
  • Need to establish community associations or improvement districts in Woods Hole neighborhoods to help fund resilience projects

To read a summary of the meetings, visit the ResilientWoodshHole Neighborhood Working Group Meeting Summary.

Visit this page for resources.

ResilientWoodsHole has create social media pages to connect with part-time and full-time residents, business owners, employees, and other stakeholders in Woods Hole.

Follow and like us on our Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter pages!

Hannah Loss from Inside Climate News visited Woods Hole to learn more about ResilientWoodsHole and learn how the community and institutions have taken steps to reduce the impacts of climate change. You can read the full article here. 

ResilientWoodsHole was awarded its second Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management (CZM) grant to continue its work in implementing community climate resiliency solutions.

Phase 4 has three main scopes focusing on the short-term, medium-term, and long-term. For the short-term, RWH is conducting climate resilient demonstration projects in MBL, WHOI, and NOAA Fisheries.

For the medium-term, RWH is conducting a feasibility study for nature-based solutions on Stoney Beach.

For the long-term, RWH is continuing outreach and engagement efforts by conducting neighborhood working groups, establishing social media pages, creating a climate resilience podcast, and developing a self-guided walking tour. 

The Phase 3 report that outlines ResilientWoodsHole's extensive outreach efforts and proposed adaptation solutions was completed in June 2022 and can be found here. 

ResilientWoodsHole commissioned Nutter McClennen & Fish, LLP to conduct a regulatory review of federal, state, and town bylaws to evaluate how regulations help or impede climate resilience action. You can read the report here.

The second participatory workshop builds upon the first community workshop. The second community workshop included a review of coastal vulnerability and potential adaptation strategies in nine areas of Woods Hole. 

Each participant provided input on the adaptation pathways in each of the nine management areas. You can access the workshop presentation here or read more about the workshop here.   

A participatory workshop beginning with a review and update on Woods Hole’s vulnerability to sea-level rise and storm surge. Followed by breakout room discussions on:

• Important aspects of Woods Hole to adapt for resilience
• Your observations of flooding in Woods Hole
• Your preferred strategies for building resilience
• Private-property flood protection opportunities
• Sewer adaptation ideas

You can watch the workshop here. 

ResilientWoodsHole is engaging the local community in a dialogue about coastal flooding risks; identifying village flood pathways and vulnerabilities; and discussing long-term protective strategies.

This phase is funded through the Office of Massachusetts Coastal Zone Management (CZM) grant and institutional matching funds. 

ResilientWoodsHole released the Phase 2 report that outlines the results of a vulnerability assessment on Woods Hole village and lifelines, such as roads. You can read the whole report here. 

A public symposium was held to raise awareness about climate-change research in Woods Hole, the ResilientWoodsHole initiative, and state, regional, and local climate resiliency planning.

You can view the symposium here.

An adaptation pathways project that builds on and integrates the results of the Town of Falmouth CCVA and the Woods Hole Village CCVA.

Phase 1 culminated in a public symposium and the Woods Hole Village CCVA was released to the public.

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Marine Biological Laboratory, and NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center commissioned Woods Hole Group to prepare the Woods Hole Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment (CCVA) and Adaptation Plan.

Periodic impacts include
Nuisance flooding of developed areas and infrastructure due to the shifting tidal range, coastal wetlands migration/loss in undeveloped areas due to the shifting tidal range, and potential erosion of natural shorelines due to repetitive storm damage.

Episodic impacts include
Risk of flooding to developed areas and infrastructure during more frequent and more intense coastal storms with greater potential for impact due to sea level rise.