The battle against climate change is just beginning and I think its fair to say everyone is playing catch up. With that said a massive step forward to protecting the Bay we love deserves a little celebration.
While climate change will effect us in many ways one aspect that is particularly perilous for those of us that enjoy being on, in, or around the water is sea level rise. With out taking action many of our access points will be destroyed, not to mention the impact on thousands who will lose their businesses and their homes.
Well last night, December 5th, was a momentous first move for Bay Area residents as we rally to combat sea level rise. The Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) approved the Bay's Regional Shoreline Adaptation Plan (RSAP) in a unanimous vote. Getting to this point was a herculean task and one that puts the San Francisco Bay Area on the forefront of defining just how to deal with climate change as it impacts our shorelines. While the plan has been decades in the working it was really a mjor push that started last September that made the plan a reality. Through countless outreach sessions, collaborative development meetings, and a broad diverse effort to include all stakeholders the BCDC should be incredibly proud of this incredible achievement. This effort made cat herding look easy. We should also say the plan was designed to be a living document that will surely be updated as we tackle all the unknowns around dealing with sea level rise.
The RSAP however is not the end all be all. It's a starting point that serves as a framework for shorelines around the world as this issue is not a local one. What makes the RSAP so special is that is not that is has all the answers. It serves as a plan that recognizes everyone's situation is a little different and that a prescriptive, preachy, politically unbalanced document is good for no-one. What is good for everyone is a framework that takes the input of all stake holders, applies rational logic, includes economic and social variables, and gives local jurisdictions the tools they need to implement solutions that will work for their unique situation. The plan strongly supports nature based solutions but was rational enough to realize their are times when hardened solutions will be needed. The plan emphasizes an excellent balance between the needs or recreation, business, housing, critical infrastructure, and wild life in a balancing act that was akin to walking a tightrope. ( Photo - Bothin Marsh in Mill Valley/Sausalito. Photo by Steve Disenhof and courtesy of the California King Tides Project.)
While its easy to point our fingers at inefficient bureaucracies that do dumb things (and we have been known to do that) we take this moment to celebrate what truly is one of the shining achievements in conservation efforts we have seen in our life time. With that said we extend our praise to everyone who pitched in and got the RSAP to this point. We are proud to be a part of this effort that we hope will save the San Francisco Bay for at least a few generations more. Now the hard work begins.
Read a Draft RSAP Here (note some small wordsmithing changes are still in the works but this is plan).
Watch a grainy low res video of the momentous vote here.
