Coastal damages along Great Lakes in New York projected to cost $101 million over next five years

A survey of ten New York cities, villages, and other jurisdictions along the Great Lakes shows that coastal damage from climate change will cost at least $101 million over the next five years, with shoreline communities having already spent $36 million over the past two years. These figures only represent a fraction of the need as not all shoreline jurisdictions are reflected in this figure.

The Coastal Resilience Needs Assessment Survey was completed in partnership with the University of Illinois Applied Research Institute and collected information from March through May 2021. The survey received nearly 300 responses from 241 jurisdictions across all eight U.S. states and two Canadian provinces that border the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River. 

This new information illustrates the scope and magnitude of climate impacts on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River and the need for increased federal assistance for coastal communities that are struggling to respond to threats to critical infrastructure and assets along their shorelines. The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative is a binational coalition of over 120 U.S. and Canadian mayors and local officials working to advance the protection and restoration of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River. It and other regional organizations are calling for funding in an upcoming infrastructure package to enable Great Lakes states and local governments to prepare for, respond to, and build resilience to current and future impacts from high lake levels and severe weather events.

The eight Great Lakes states have over 4,500 miles of shoreline, nearly as much as all the states bordering on the Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, and west coasts combined. The Great Lakes represents approximately 80 percent of North America’s surface freshwater supply and provides drinking water for 40 million people. The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative says a substantial, targeted investment in coastal resilience along the Great Lakes is warranted and will generate significant benefits for the environmental and economic health of shoreline communities.

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