Approved by the Energy, Environment and Water Policy Committee n March 21, 2025 
Approved by the Public Policy and Practice Committee on June 4, 2025
Adopted by the Board of Direction on July10, 2025

Policy

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) supports continued and expanded funding for coastal wetland research, preservation, and restoration programs at the federal, state, and local level. Additionally, ASCE supports:

  • Reauthorization and continued funding for coastal wetland preservation and restoration projects under the Coastal Wetlands, Planning, Protection, and Restoration Act of 1990 (CWPPRA).
  • Development of programs similar to the CWPPRA for other regions of the United States.
  • Continuation and development of additional revenue-sharing funding sources for coastal wetland preservation and restoration programs.
  • Federal, state, and local programs to reduce land loss along coastal wetlands through protection and restoration of the physical and ecological processes necessary to sustain these unique ecosystems.
  • Funding and implementing beneficial use of dredged material, regional sediment management plans, and a programmatic authorization of federal civil works projects that allow restoration and preservation work to continue on a long-term basis.
  • The principle that coastal wetland restoration and hurricane protection are part of an integrated regional watershed and coastal zone management effort, which considers the interrelationships of natural, social, and economic systems from coordinated federal, state, local and private initiatives.

Issue

Coastal wetlands are extremely valuable because they can decrease flooding, remove pollutants from water, recharge groundwater, store carbon, protect shorelines, provide habitat for wildlife, and serve important recreational and cultural functions. The largest percentage of coastal wetlands in the United States (U.S.) are along the Atlantic and Southeastern coastal states and they provide ecological and economic resources. However, the U.S. is losing significant acreage of coastal wetlands. According to the joint U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Report on the Status and Trends of Wetlands in the Coastal Watersheds of the Conterminous United States, the U.S. lost 18,190 acres of coastal wetlands per year between 2009 and 2019. These losses are centered on the Gulf, South Atlantic, and Great Lakes coastal watersheds (-0.7%, -0.6%, and -.04% loss of coastal wetland area, respectively). This is an improvement over the previous study that estimated 80,160 acres of coastal wetland loss per year between 2004 and 2009. Despite the improvement, the study found a preferential loss of vegetated wetlands such as salt marshes and swamps and gains in non-vegetated wetlands such as stormwater ponds and mudflats. This alteration in wetland type can reduce the habitat and resilience benefits provided to nearby communities. 

The enactment of CWPPRA in 1990 initiated efforts to address the losses in Louisiana and created a grant funding source for projects that protect and restore coastal wetlands. As of January 2024, CWPPRA has supported 234 projects in coastal Louisiana. Funding is primarily provided.

In the past, additional funding for coastal wetlands restoration has often been made available after natural and other ecological disasters for purposes of hazard recovery and mitigation. Funding from new and innovative revenue sources is needed on a proactive basis to continue progress on coastal wetland preservation.

Rationale

Coastal wetlands provide billions of dollars of economic service to people and the environment. That number accounts for cost savings due to flood reduction, recreation, and harvesting natural resources. Civil engineers are responsible for planning, design, and implementation of projects in coastal regions; coastal wetlands provide essential resilience to coastal hazards, such as flood and wave attenuation, that these projects depend upon. Additionally, restoring coastal wetlands can provide an increased level of protection and valuable ecological benefits to coastal regions.

ASCE Policy Statement 498 
First Approved in 2003