2014 Theses Master's

Investigating The Impact Of Smart Growth Policies On Floodplain Development

Ramani, Shraddha

The effects of climate change are a growing threat to communities around the world. Coastal areas are especially vulnerable to flooding due to rising sea levels and extreme storm events. Long term planning efforts include both adaptation to these changes and mitigation to address the root causes of climate change. However, sometimes adaptation and mitigation efforts can counteract each other. Smart growth is a strategy that addresses many of the root causes of climate change by creating denser communities that are less reliant on automobiles. However, creating denser communities on coastal floodplains goes against adaptation measures by putting an increased number of people at risk. Controlling for external factors such as community size, land use, and housing types, this study will use an index that measures the density of population per unit of impervious surface and use qualitative, quantitative and spatial analysis methods to compare floodplain development in New Jersey, which has a smart growth plan, to Long Island, which does not have a regional growth plan.