Smart Zoning for Flood Adaptation and Resilience

Overview

Since 2016, flooding from extreme weather events has caused over $40 billion in damages across eastern North Carolina, as a result coastal municipalities are seeking strategies to reduce current and future flood risk. Land use policies and zoning regulations have been successfully implemented to protect residents and reduce long-term vulnerability to flooding. However, zoning data are limited in scale and availability making regional-scale assessments of zoning regulations in flood-prone areas difficult. Through this project, we applied a machine-learning method to predict zoning for North Carolina’s Coastal Plain and leveraged predictive modeling to locate high-risk, overburdened, and under-served communities where adaptive zoning strategies could be implemented for flood adaptation and resilience.

Community Collaborations

Throughout this project, we collaborated with the Leland, NC Community Development Planning Department. Leland is located in Brunswick County on the coast of North Carolina. Leland is rapidly growing and open to utilizing smart zoning techniques to reduce flood risk and benefit their community. We met virtually and in person periodically over one year to gauge interest, adjust research based on local expertise, and share localized results.

Findings

We produced zoning predictions statewide for North Carolina, available here. We explored flood exposure and zoning regulations across Brunswick County. Tailored local results were presented to and shared with the Leland Community Development Planning Department. Efforts are underway to create public repository to share results.