Adaptive management is the process by which programs and projects are amended over time in response to assessment of monitoring data and other feedback related to their implementation or performance; it ensures they remain science-backed and effective. The concept is increasingly being adopted by the decision-making bodies that are facilitating restoration efforts in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, as well as in other coastal conservation and restoration contexts.
Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (“CPRA”) is no exception, and has received millions of dollars in oil spill-related funding to dedicate to adaptive management in the coastal restoration context. Further, the Authority is committed to incorporating adaptive management into its programs and projects, and surveyed academic literature and other sources to identify the core features of an effective adaptive management process. In its 2017 Coastal Master Plan, CPRA outlined guidance on how to adopt adaptive management ideals at both the programmatic and project-specific levels. A 2020 report compiled for CPRA by the Water Institute of the Gulf built off and expanded upon these processes.
This case study discusses how various components of adaptive management are incorporated into the Federal Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act (“CWPPRA”). It seeks to provide an analysis of CWPPRA’s current adaptive management mechanisms, extrapolate lessons learned, and identify areas for potential improvement by assessing CWPPRA’s processes in terms of different components of adaptive management.