Nature Is Infrastructure: Our Nation Must Invest in It

The pictures of communities like Pensacola, Fla., and Lake Charles, La., damaged by recent hurricanes are sadly all too familiar. We can’t control Mother Nature, but we can do more to invest in enhancing the resilience of communities, lowering the impact to infrastructure when storms hit. We know that preparing for natural disasters creates jobs, reduces recovery costs, and saves lives.

As Congress deliberates possible disaster aid, a stimulus package, and infrastructure bills like the Water Resources Development Act, one area that demands more investment is in the shorelines, wetlands and reefs that are part of the country’s natural infrastructure.

Lessons From Hurricane Sandy

To understand why this is important, consider when Hurricane Sandy hit Cape May, N.J., in 2012.

As the storm churned over the ocean, sea level rose, sending fierce waves crashing into the shore, putting homes, schools, offices, factories, roads, bridges, shops, and hospitals—the entire infrastructure of a community—and people’s lives—at risk.

But for this community, nature was serving as a buffer between it and the water, with wetlands and sand dunes stopping waves, absorbing floodwaters, and protecting the community.

The nature-based solutions, which included beach replenishment, dune reconstruction, wetlands restoration, habitat improvements, creation of levees and installation of water control structures, saved Cape May Point from sustaining what could have been massive amounts of property damage and financial hardship.

Natural and Traditional Infrastructure Work Together

The Nature Conservancy — which implemented the natural infrastructure project along with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the state of New Jersey — conducted a scientific study showing that flood insurance claims from homes in Cape May Point will drop by $9.6 million over the next 50 years because of those protective natural areas.

In some situations, nature can also be paired with traditional infrastructure. At Howard Beach in Queens, N.Y., a study found that the best investments to enhance the resilience of the community involved combining concrete breakwaters and flood walls with mussel beds and beach restoration. These steps, according to the study, could save $244 million in damages during a major storm.

Natural infrastructure has other benefits, too. Wetlands filter pollutants and improve water quality. Reefs and mangroves create wildlife nurseries that boost fisheries. Additional natural areas provide more opportunities for recreation that enhance community well-being. These investments create valuable jobs and provide an important boost for local economies.

Natural Infrastructure Initiative

It’s not just conservation organizations like the Conservancy that see the value in this approach. Local municipalities, federal agencies such as the Army Corps of Engineers, and corporations are increasingly considering natural and traditional infrastructure solutions, sometimes even in tandem.

For the private sector, it makes good business sense. AECOM, for instance, sees the global need for building and updating infrastructure and understands that some of this need can be filled through investments in natural infrastructure. That is why AECOM and the Conservancy are members of the Natural Infrastructure Initiative.

The initiative also counts corporations like Caterpillar; Great Lakes Dredge and Dock; Brown and Root; Dawson Associates; Ducks Unlimited; the University of Georgia; and Conservation International as members. It came together around a common understanding on how natural solutions offer an opportunity to maximize the economic, environmental and societal benefits of needed infrastructure.

For example, in this year’s Water Resources Development Act—a bill that invests in our nation’s water infrastructure—both the Senate (S. 3591) and House (H.R. 7575) bills contain provisions enabling investment in nature-based solutions, including restoring ecosystems such as coastal estuaries and riparian buffers in flood-prone areas. We call on Congress to take the final steps to passing the act.

We know the impact of storms like Sally and Laura are lasting, and it’s inevitable there will be more storms like these. In the coming months, as members of Congress make decisions on these infrastructure investments, including the federal government’s actions in response to Covid-19, and perhaps to these recent hurricanes, we need to reimagine the way we approach infrastructure, and we know nature can and must be part of the solution.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc. or its owners.

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Author Information

Lynn Scarlett is the chief external affairs officer at the Nature Conservancy. She is a former deputy secretary of the Interior in the George W. Bush administration.

Michael J. Donahue is vice president and director of the national coastal and ecosystem restoration practice at AECOM.