Exploring the disaster risk reduction and energy resilience benefits of coastal ecosystems and protected areas in Puerto Rico

Coastal hazards associated with sea-level rise and extreme events threaten people and energy infrastructure in Small Island Developing States. Coastal communities could benefit from conserving and restoring nearby ecosystems that mitigate hazard impacts such as coral reefs, mangrove forests, and seagrass beds. However, the intersection between nature-based coastal risk reduction, protected areas, and energy resilience is currently not well-understood. This study aims to address these gaps by exploring where protected and unprotected ecosystems reduce the risk of coastal hazards for people and energy infrastructure under future sea-level rise. Focusing on Puerto Rico, where Hurricane Maria destroyed the electrical grid in 2017, we used a spatial model to estimate an exposure index based on biophysical and oceanographic data. Our model shows that the number of people at highest hazard risk would nearly triple if coastal ecosystems were lost, and the number of electrical substations at highest risk would nearly quadruple. In total, ecosystems may reduce hazard exposure for over one third of the coastline under sea-level rise, and a majority of that mitigation is sustained by protected areas. By exploring where energy infrastructure within municipalities benefits from nature-based coastal risk reduction, our results suggest sites for new protected areas that could enhance energy resilience. Leveraging protected areas for disaster risk reduction and energy resilience reveals opportunities to engage new actors and institutions in broader conservation initiatives and nature-based solutions.