Coastal Hazards

Map of Waimea area with superimposed color illustrating flooded areas at 3.2 feet of sea level rise

Integrating climate science with local knowledge through community vulnerability assessment on Kaua‘i

PI: Daniele Spirandelli, Asst. Professor of Urban Design and Planning, UH Mānoa
Graduate Scholar: Alisha Summers, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2018

Honokea loko fishpond with still waters reflecting the sky surrounded by coconut trees and containing an island with hala trees on top.

MCC Loko iʻa collaborative restoration PICCC film

The Pacific Islands Climate Change Cooperative (PICCC), PI-CASC’s partner, released a film highlighting MCC supported collaborative restoration of loko iʻa (traditional Hawaiian fishponds) in Keaukaha developed through their Hawaiian Islands Terrestrial Adaptation Initiative (HITAI).

A small historical hut backed by palms sits on a rocky headland with waves in the foreground.

Supporting sea-level rise preparedness in Hawaiian National Parks

PI: Philip Thompson, Assoc. Director of UH Sea Level center, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2018

Big Island Video News item on Staphylococcus in Hilo Bay project

A Big Island Video News report on the Hawaiʻi County Council Environmental Management committee presentation with MCC researchers Louise Economy and Tracy Wiegner to learn more about Staphylococcus in Hilo Bay.

Narrow strips and circles of land rise barely above sea level.

Characterizing inundation risk for Majuro Atoll

PI: Dean Gesch, Research Scientist, USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center
Co-I: Jeff Danielson , Physical Geographer, USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center
Funded: FY2017

Impacts of climate change in loko i‘a (traditional Hawaiian fishponds) management I

PI: Steven Colbert, Assistant Professor of Marine Science, UH Hilo
MCC Graduate Scholar: Cherie Kauahi, Tropical Conservation Biology & Environmental Science, UH Hilo
Co-I: Noelani Punawai, Assistant Professor, Kamakakakūokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies, UH Hilo
Funded: FY2016

Several volunteers work on the rock pile bordering a stream of water leading from the fishpond.

Impacts of climate change in loko i‘a (traditional Hawaiian fishponds) management II

PI: Steven Colbert, Associate Professor of Marine Science, UH Hilo
MCC Graduate Scholar: Kamala Anthony, Tropical Conservation Biology & Environmental Science, UH Hilo
Co-I: Noelani Punawai, Assistant Professor, Kamakakakūokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies, UH Hilo
Funded: FY2016

A satellite image of the rectangular ring of Majuro Atoll in the midst of a blue sea.

Collecting elevation data to understand climate change effects in the Marshall Islands

PI: Jeffrey Danielson , Physical Geographer, USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS)
Co-Is: Monica Palaseanu-Lovejoy, Research Geographer, USGS Eastern Geographic Science Center; Cindy Thatcher, Research Biologist, Cooperative Data Acquisition, NGPO; Dean Gesch, Research Scientist, USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center; Matthew Barbee, Biologist, UH Mānoa; Romina King, Asst. Professor of Geography, University of Guam; Maria Kottermair, GIS specialist, University of Guam
Funded: FY2016

Ocean water floods over a lawn and into a house along a low shoreline.

Simulating and projecting future impacts of sea-level rise on Majuro Atoll

PI: Charles Fletcher, Professor of Earth Sciences, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2016

An overhead view shows white surf crashing along a dark sandy coastline backed by green vegetation.

Estimating coastal erosion rates on Hawai‘i Island to inform setbacks

PI: Ryan L. Perroy, Associate Professor of Geography and Environmental Science, UH Hilo
MCC Graduate Scholar: Rose Hart, Tropical Conservation Biology & Environmental Science, UH Hilo
Collaborators: Steven Colbert, Assistant Professor of Marine Science, UH Hilo; Charles Fletcher, Professor of Geology & Geophysics, UH Mānoa
Funded: FY2016

CLIMATE SCIENCE

COASTAL HAZARDS