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Box 3 -3. Vulnerability of the Albemarle - Pamlico Peninsula to sea level rise and stakeholder response
<br />(Source: Feldman et al. 2009, see original report for citations).
<br />Vulnerability to sea -level rise on the diverse Albemarle — Pamlico Peninsula is very high: about two - thirds of the
<br />peninsula is less than 1.5 meters (m) (5 feet [ft]) above sea level (Heath, 1975), and approximately 30 percent is less
<br />than I m (3 ft) above sea level (Poulter, 2005). Shoreline retreat rates in parts of the peninsula are already high, up
<br />to about 8 m (25 ft) per year (Riggs and Ames, 2003). The ecosystems of the Albemarle — Pamlico Peninsula have long
<br />been recognized for their biological and ecological value. The peninsula is home to four national wildlife refuges, the
<br />first of which was established in 1932. In all, a.bout ane• third of the p- eninsula has been set aside for arnservatinn
<br />purposes.
<br />The Albemarle-- P'arnlico Peninsula i5 among HO th Caralina�s poc5t -6st areas. Four of 45 Nu counties are classified
<br />as economically distressed by the state, with high unemployment rates and low average household incomes (NC
<br />Department of Commerce, 2008). However, now that undeveloped waterfront property on the Outer Banks is
<br />very expensive and scarce, developers have discovered the sn-oll fishing villages on the peninsula and begun acquir-
<br />ing property in several areas — including Columbia (Tyrrell County), Engelhard (Hyde County), and Bath (Beaufort
<br />County). The peninsula is being marketed as the "Inner Banks" (Washington County, 2008). Communities across
<br />the peninsula are planning infrastructure, including wastewater treatment facilities and desalination plants for drink-
<br />ing water, to enable new development. Columbia and Plymouth (Washington County) have become demonstra-
<br />tion sites in the North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center's STEP (Small Towns Economic Prosperity)
<br />Program, which is designed to support revitalization and provide information vital to developing public policies that
<br />support long -term investment in small towns (NC REDC, 2006).
<br />There are already signs that sea -level rise is causing ecosystems on the Albemarle — Pamlico Peninsula to change.
<br />For example, at the Buckridge Coastal Reserve, a 7,547- hectare (ha) (18,650 -acre [ac]) area owned by the North
<br />Carolina Division of Coastal Management, dieback is occurring in several areas of Atlantic white cedar. Other parts
<br />of the cedar community are beginning to show signs of stress. Initial investigations suggest the dieback is associated
<br />with altered hydrologic conditions, due to canals and ditches serving as conduits that bring salt and brackish water
<br />into the peat soils where cedar usually grows. Storms have pushed estuarine water into areas that are naturally
<br />fresh, affecting water chemistry, peatland soils, and vegetation intolerant of saline conditions (Poulter and Pederson,
<br />2006). There is growing zwarcaLss on the part u residP_nts and local officials about potential vulnerabilities across
<br />the landscape (Poulter, et al., 2009). Some farmers acknowledge that saltwater intrusion and sea -level rise are af-
<br />fecting tkccir fields (Moorleacl arsd Brinson, 1995). Researchers at North Carolina State University are using Hyde
<br />County farms to experiment with the development of new varieties of salt - tolerant soybeans (Lee et al., 2004).
<br />Hyde County is building a dike around Swan Quarter, the county seat (Hyde County, 2008).
<br />A variety of evidence has suggested to some stakeholders that the risks to the Albemarle — Pamlico Peninsula merit
<br />special management responses. In fact, because so much of the landscape across the peninsula has been transformed
<br />by humans, some have expressed concern that the ecosystem may be less resilient and less likely to be able to
<br />adapt when exposed to mounting stresses (Pearsall et al., 2005). Thus far, no comprehensive long -term response
<br />to the effects of sea -level rise on the Peninsula has been proposed. In 2007, The Nature Conservancy, U.S. Fish and
<br />Wildlife Service, National Audubon Society, Environmental Defense, Ducks Unlimited, the North Carolina Coastal
<br />Federation, and others began working to build an Albemarle — Pamlico Conservation and Communities Collaborative
<br />(AP3C) to develop a long -term strategic vision for the peninsula. Although this initiative is only in its infancy, sea -
<br />ieve -I rise wlll be one of tl:e Frstand most important issues the partnershipwill address (TNC. 2008).
<br />The Nature Cc, nstr•vancy and other stakeholder s have already id rnt vd sever-'al adaptive responses to sea -level rise
<br />on the Peninsula. Many of these approaches require community participation in conservation efforts, land protec-
<br />non, and adaptive management (Pearsall and Pointer 2005). Sppc.Ar. management strategies that The Naturp. C8n-
<br />servancy and others have recommended include: plugging drainage ditches and installing tide gates in agricultural
<br />£gilds w that sea water does not flow inland through them, est;i 61 i sh i ng cypress trees where land has been cleared
<br />in areas that are expected to become wetlands in the future, reestablishing brackish marshes in hospitable areas
<br />that are likely to become wetlands in the future, creating conservation corridors that run from the shoreline inland
<br />to facilitate habitat migration, reducing habitat fragmentation, banning or restricting hardened structures along the
<br />estuarine shoreline, and establishing oyster reefs and submerged aquatic vegetation beds offshore to help buffer
<br />shorelines (Pearsall and DeBlieu, 2005; Pearsall and Poulter, 2005).
<br />72 Chapter 3: Projected Impacts of Climate Change in North Carolina
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