COMMUNITY CASE STUDY article
Front. Clim.
Sec. Climate Mobility
Volume 7 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fclim.2025.1510802
This article is part of the Research TopicManaged Retreat in Response to Climate HazardsView all 10 articles
Retreat in Real Time -Nantucket's Balancing Act Along a Changing Coast
Provisionally accepted
- 1Arcadis U.S., Inc., Wakefield, Massachusetts, United States
- 2Town of Nantucket Natural Resources Department, Nantucket, Massachusetts, United States
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Nantucket, an island about 30 miles off the coast of Massachusetts, has long embraced retreat in response to coastal hazards. This community case study examines how Nantucket is enhancing its resilience by adapting to increasing coastal storms, erosion, and sea level rise through strategic retreat and relocation. Nantucketers have historically moved structures such as lighthouses and homes away from the coastline, but the increasing frequency and intensity of storms demand more comprehensive and adaptable solutions. Through resilience planning and policy efforts, the Town of Nantucket is addressing these challenges by balancing short- and long-term objectives, public and private interests, and equity considerations. Lessons learned from Nantucket’s experiences are applicable to other communities facing similar coastal risks, highlighting the importance of strategic planning, community support, and capacity building for effective retreat and relocation.
Keywords: Retreat, Nantucket, resilience, Climate Change, coastal hazards
Received: 13 Oct 2024; Accepted: 15 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 McKaye, Murphy and Hill. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Devon J McKaye, Arcadis U.S., Inc., Wakefield, Massachusetts, United States
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