Open AccessDesigning effective incentives for living shorelines as a habitat conservation strategy along residential coasts
Author(s) -
Scyphers Steven B.,
Beck Michael W.,
Furman Kelsi L.,
Haner Judy,
Keeler Andrew G.,
Landry Craig E.,
O'Donnell Kiera L.,
Webb Bret M.,
Grabowski Jonathan H.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
conservation letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.153
H-Index - 79
ISSN - 1755-263X
DOI - 10.1111/conl.12744
Subject(s) - shore , habitat , incentive , ecosystem , fishery , ecosystem services , environmental resource management , geography , ecology , environmental science , economics , biology , microeconomics
Shoreline armoring is a pervasive driver of habitat loss and ecosystem decline along coastlines. Nature‐based strategies for coastal protection, such as “living shorelines,” offer potential alternatives to armoring and are rapidly gaining traction among conservation scientists and practitioners. However, along residential coasts where armoring has often occurred at high rates, transitioning away from armoring has been generally slow. We studied the attitudes, beliefs, and decisions of waterfront homeowners with a goal of identifying effective incentives for living shorelines as a conservation tool for reversing coastal habitat loss. We show that while only 18% of homeowners with armored shorelines would willingly transition to living shorelines during a key window of opportunity, a modest economic incentive could increase the likelihood among 43% of all respondents and up to 61% of recent homeowners. Our study demonstrates potential pathways for navigating social, economic, and environmental influences on landowner decisions for coastal habitat conservation.