Communities along the Eastern Shore have been planning for sea level rise for the last several years. Communities like Crisfield, Cambridge, Oxford, and St. Michaels have spent thousands of dollars preparing studies and plans to combat projected increases in Chesapeake Bay water levels due principally to sea level rise and storm surge events. Our state, “with its 3,190 miles of shoreline, extensive low-lying coastal land, and productive estuarine habitats, is particularly vulnerable to multiple consequences of sea-level rise”, as stated in the State of Maryland’s most recent Sea-Level Rise Projections for Maryland 2023.
At the end of the communities’ study and design phase, there existed a federal program called Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) which provided construction funds to states to then allocate to local communities to assist with the significant cost of implementing sea level rise protections. This was a competitive nationwide program designed to protect properties and businesses from natural disasters. However, on April 4, 2025, President Trump’s Homeland Security Secretary Noem, abruptly ended the program calling it a “wasteful and ineffective FEMA program. It was more concerned with political agendas than helping Americans affected by natural disasters.”
It should be undeniable that mitigating flood events now will alleviate the funds needed for communities to recover from natural disasters in the future. Suggesting that BRIC was due to a “political agenda” illustrates a disdain for science and indifference in protecting citizens and businesses impacted by future flood events. Their action is an unfortunate short-term view of addressing a significant issue that is real and is happening. Helping communities prepare for flood events is not “waste, fraud or abuse,” as the Secretary suggests…