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Sea Grant & Weather Program Office award $1.5 million for community flooding social science liaisons as part of the Biden-Harris administration’s $22.78 million investment to help communities better prepare for water-related climate impacts

A young girl walks barefoot through a flooded street in front of a seafood market, holding a doll. The street and surrounding buildings are partially submerged, showcasing the effects of coastal flooding in a small town.
Dayja Weeks, 9, walks through the flooded streets near the Seafood Armory in Downtown Hampton on Saturday, Sep. 14, 2018. Hampton Roads saw rain, high winds and flooding as Hurricane Florence made landfall in North Carolina. (Photo credit: Aileen Devlin | Virginia Sea Grant)

Today, the Department of Commerce and NOAA announced $22.78 million in funding to NOAA labs, programs, cooperative institutes and other research partners to advance research on a wide range of water-driven climate impacts. Research topics include coastal and inland flood and inundation mapping and forecasting, and next-generation water modeling activities, including modernized precipitation frequency studies. 

“Thanks to President Biden’s historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, this investment will help boost NOAA’s efforts to address the rising threat of climate change — putting us on the path to becoming more climate resilient and giving future generations the information and resources needed to tackle the climate crisis,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo.

In recent years, the increasing frequency and severity of coastal and inland flooding, extreme precipitation and other weather events have highlighted the urgent need for better prediction and resilience strategies. Rising sea levels, driven by climate change, are exacerbating these challenges and putting coastal communities at greater risk. 

These funds from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will help communities prepare for a range of climate impacts and will directly benefit policymakers, emergency responders, researchers and the general public. Today’s announcement is part of more than $6 billion being invested by NOAA in habitat restoration, weather forecasting, and community resilience to weather and climate events through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act. 

“By integrating cutting-edge science and technology into prediction tools, we are working to equip communities to prepare for and respond to water-driven climate impacts on our path to becoming a climate-ready nation,” said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad, Ph.D. “These efforts enhance our nation’s resilience and underscore NOAA’s commitment to supporting sustainable and informed decision-making in the face of climate variability and change.”

Investigating the complex interactions between the ocean, atmosphere and land systems is key to creating more accurate forecasts. Funded projects range from refining long-term water level predictions to better understanding natural climate patterns like the El Nino–Southern Oscillation to developing real-time flood risk prediction systems. Others focus on updating climate risk information to inform resilience strategies for communities as well as our nation’s infrastructure, including major bridges, power plants and ports.

Through this initiative, NOAA’s National Sea Grant and Weather Program Office, awarded $1.5 million to the Maryland and Puerto Rico Sea Grant programs to hire community flooding social science liaisons who will use social, economic and behavioral research with the community-based capabilities of the Sea Grant network to facilitate the implementation of flood inundation mapping services for Maryland and Puerto Rico emergency responders, water managers and the public.

Learn about the other NOAA initiatives supported by this Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding and visit NOAA’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law website to learn about funding opportunities and additional resources.

Picture of Amara Davis

Amara Davis

Outreach Coordinator
National Sea Grant Office

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