MARBLEHEAD — To kick off Climate Week, state and town officials gathered Tuesday afternoon at Hammond Park to announce plans for how the town will be using grant funding to combat coastal flooding.
The town’s grant funding, awarded through the Baker-Polito administration’s Coastal Resilience Grant Program, will be used to make improvements at the Marblehead Municipal Light Department (MMLD), which provides the entire town with electricity, and the facility’s adjoining public parcels along Marblehead Harbor; these parcels include commercial and recreational boating, fishing facilities, and a waterfront park.
Fittingly, the project was announced at the seaside park, which is located next to the Municipal Light Department Building and overlooks Marblehead Harbor. The project will cost $177,703; $131,705 will be funded by grants and $45,998 will be provided by the MMLD.
“The grant funds will enable us to develop short- and long-term plans and actions that will help ensure the future reliable delivery of electricity to Marblehead’s 20,000 residents,” said MMLD General Manager Joseph Kowalik. “As a result of climate change, the harbor now represents a threat to our reliable operations.
“The electric generators are no longer in the building, but one of the four substations in Marblehead, our original substation that provides electricity to our downtown area, remains. So ensuring the substation remains protected from coastal-storm surges worsened by a rising sea level is absolutely critical.”
In 2018, the town completed a Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) plan, and developed conceptual adaptation options for public infrastructure in 2020 using funds from a Coastal Resilience Grant.
In the MVP plan, the MMLD was identified as a high-priority, critical asset, which was one of five areas that was at risk for coastal flooding; this was determined through completion of a Massachusetts Coast Flood Risk Model climate-change assessment.
The improvements at the MMLD will include structural retrofits of the building, improved designs for seawalls, nonstructural measures to address coastal flooding and increase coastal resilience along the harbor, and other flood pathways.
With the funding, Marblehead and the Light Department will seek public input while the MMLD looks to adapt with the aim of reducing the risk of flooding brought on by higher tides and greater storm surge.
State Rep. Lori Ehrlich (D-Marblehead) described herself as a veteran when it comes to sustainability efforts. After trying to convince people that climate change does in fact exist, she said, the effort is now focused on mitigating the future effects of climate change.
Town Administrator Jason Silva said that the town has been focused on sustainability efforts for many years now. He said the harbor is an important resource that needs to be protected.
“It’s beautiful,” said Silva. “It’s an important recreational resource in town. It’s also really important for commerce so we’ve really been focused on those initiatives.”
