Beyond Clapper Rails & Spartina: Skip Stiles & Wetlands Watch lead managed retreat at the neighborhood level

American Shoreline Podcast Network - A podcast by The American Shoreline Podcast Network

Live from the Social Coast Forum 2020, Peter, Tyler, and Bill sit down with Skip Stiles,  Executive Director of Wetlands Watch, a statewide nonprofit environmental group based in Norfolk, VA.  Sea levels in Norfolk are rising faster than any other place on the American shoreline.  Well beyond Clapper Rails and Spartina, Wetlands Watch is engaged in the difficult issue of managed retreat at the neighborhood level, working cooperatively with land owners to save property values but relocate structures that are soon to be inundated.  Turns out protecting wetlands as sea levels rise means creating space for these natural systems to migrate landward.  It's a big land management issue requiring specialized skills in property transactions, finance, law, and, most importantly, building deep roots of trust in the community.  Skip and his team are at the forefront of developing this new tool kit.  Check it out.  ASPN:  Insight and Intelligence for Thriving Shorelines.