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GIFT’s Climate Adaptation map offers cities a clear strategy to tackle the effects of climate change. It designates individual parcels for "preservation" of low-density development and natural greenspaces and wetlands, suggests "mitigation" by enhancing vacant, low-value, and/or highly impervious properties with expansive nature-based solutions, and recommends "retrofitting" to integrate green infrastructure, such as green roofs, living walls, and tree wells, into existing buildings and rights-of-way located in densely developed neighborhoods.

Preservation

Preserving natural and open spaces, as well as spaces with low-density developments and minimal impervious surfaces, acts as a buffer against climate risks, absorbing excess water during heavy rainfall and reducing flood potential. These spaces, rich in vegetation, also sequester carbon, combatting rising atmospheric CO2 levels, and provide cooling effects, mitigating urban heat islands. Additionally, they support biodiversity, ensuring ecosystem health and resilience against environmental shifts.

The following are examples of preservation measures that can be applied:

Land Use Zoning: Implement zoning regulations that restrict or limit intensive development in these areas, preserving their natural state and inherent climate resilience.
Conservation Easements: Establish conservation easements or land trusts that legally protect these areas from future development, ensuring their ecological functions remain intact.
Habitat Restoration: In areas previously disturbed but still having low development, undertake habitat restoration efforts to return the land to its natural state, enhancing its capacity to mitigate climate impacts.
Watershed Protection: Preserve natural buffers around watersheds, maintaining the quality of water sources and reducing the risk of flooding downstream.
Educational and Recreational Designation: Designate these areas as educational or recreational spaces, like nature reserves or parks, which allows for light human activity without compromising the land's natural resilience to climate risks.

By prioritizing these preservation measures, communities can ensure that low development and low imperviousness areas continue to serve as natural buffers against climate challenges, benefiting both the environment and the populace.

Mitigation

Mitigating risk in locations with low-density development but high impervious surfaces reduces surface runoff, decreasing flood risks and replenishing groundwater. Addressing areas with moderate- to high-density development, high imperviousness, and low property value offers an opportunity to retrofit or redevelop with climate-resilient infrastructure without significant economic displacement. Both strategies enhance urban resilience, ensuring safer, more sustainable environments in the face of increasing climate challenges.

The following are examples of mitigation measures that can be applied:

Permeable Pavements: Replace traditional impervious surfaces with permeable pavements, allowing water to seep through and reduce surface runoff, thereby decreasing flood risks.
Green Roofs and Walls: In high development areas, retrofit existing buildings with green roofs and walls. These not only absorb rainwater but also provide insulation and reduce the urban heat island effect.
Urban Wetlands and Rain Gardens: Convert underutilized or vacant plots in low property value areas into urban wetlands or rain gardens. These features can absorb significant amounts of stormwater, filter pollutants, and provide biodiversity benefits.
Tree Planting and Urban Canopy Expansion: Introduce more greenery by planting trees, especially in areas with high impervious surfaces. Trees can absorb water, provide shade, and reduce heat, making urban areas more resilient to climate extremes.
Stormwater Management Systems: Implement advanced stormwater management systems, like bioswales and retention basins, especially in densely developed areas. These systems can capture, store, and slowly release stormwater, reducing the risk of flash floods.

By integrating these mitigation measures, cities can transform vulnerable urban landscapes into resilient spaces that are better equipped to handle climate-related challenges.

Retrofit

Retrofitting locations with moderate- to high-density development and high imperviousness introduces climate-resilient features into dense urban areas prone to flooding and heat stress. By integrating green infrastructure, such as green roofs, permeable pavements, living walls, and tree canopy expansion, these areas can better manage stormwater and reduce the urban heat island effect. This transformation not only safeguards existing infrastructure but also enhances the livability and sustainability of urban environments amidst climate challenges.

The following are examples of retrofit measures that can be applied:

Green Roofs: Retrofit existing buildings with vegetative roofs that can absorb rainwater, provide insulation, and mitigate the urban heat island effect.
Rainwater Harvesting Systems: Install systems to capture and store rainwater from rooftops, which can then be used for non-potable purposes, reducing the demand on municipal water supplies and managing stormwater.
Permeable Pavement Replacement: Replace traditional impervious pavements in parking lots and pedestrian areas with permeable materials, allowing for better water infiltration and reducing surface runoff.
Vertical Gardens and Green Walls: Integrate green walls on the sides of existing buildings, which can help in temperature regulation, provide additional insulation, and absorb rainwater.
Bioswales and Stormwater Planters: Retrofit urban streetscapes by introducing bioswales and stormwater planters. These features capture, filter, and slowly release stormwater, enhancing the urban drainage capacity and reducing flood risks.

Incorporating these retrofit measures in densely developed areas can significantly enhance their resilience to climate-related challenges, ensuring safer and more sustainable urban environments.

Zoning Code Modifications

Zoning code modifications can directly influence land use and development patterns, steering communities towards climate-resilient practices. By setting regulations that promote green infrastructure, limit development in flood-prone areas, and encourage energy-efficient designs, zoning can reduce vulnerabilities to extreme weather events and rising temperatures. Through proactive zoning adjustments, communities can enhance their resilience, ensuring safer and more sustainable environments in the face of climate challenges.

In Neptune Beach, the following zoning code modifications will have the greatest positive impact on your climate resilience:

Native Plants & Permeable Surfaces. Prioritizing native species and materials that harmonize with the environment helps in managing stormwater and urban flooding, mitigating the heat island effect, and reducing water stress.
Green Architectural Choices. Integrating green or living walls, green roofs, and other sustainable architectural elements can enhance Neptune Beach' resilience to climate-related impacts.
Nature-Based Stormwater Management: Using green infrastructure like permeable pavements, rain gardens, and bioswales can address potential flooding and standing water issues.