Adaptation and Mitigation Strategies for Coastal Areas

Abstract

Climate-related changes represent potential additional stresses on the coastal ecosystems that are already under pressure from degradation and non-climatic pressure. The potential impact of these pressures on the coastal areas and livelihood of coastal communities necessitate the need for researchers, policymakers, residents, and other key stakeholders to work together to establish a framework for adaptation that is integrated within current coastal management processes and practices and takes a broader view of the subject. There are three important coastal adaptation strategies, viz. protection, accommodation, and retreat. All these measures involve technologies, often available or known to the scientific communities. The major challenge to adaptation is access to the adaptation measures , participation by all the stakeholders, and coordination at different levels. At the same time, mitigation methods are centred on adjustment or modification in transportation, shelter, food production, energy, and carbon storage and bioen-gineering. This chapter describes various options available for adaptation and mitigation strategies for natural as well as human-managed systems.