Wareham

The Town of Wareham, with 22,694 residents, has 27 miles of bayfront shoreline [CIT. 17] including the Weweantic and Wareham River estuaries, Onset Bay, and the Stony Point Dike. At the head of Buzzards Bay, several of its low-lying neighborhoods face significant storm flooding risk as water funnels up the bay.

In the next 30 years, Wareham is projected to experience a variety of impacts (see Coastal Impact Matrix for details).

As soon as 2050:

DEVELOPED AREAS: Daily tidal flooding is projected to impact approximately 250 buildings [CIT. 5]. A 10-year flood may impact 4,326 buildings (27% of town buildings), while a 100- year flood may impact 6,365 buildings (39%) [CIT. 5]. Flooding is projected to affect the downtown village, state-designated Environmental Justice areas (see pg. 13), municipal offices, wastewater pump stations, and historic assets such as the Tremont Nail Factory.

ROADS: Daily tidal flooding may impact 3.2 miles of roads [CIT. 5]. A 10-year flood is projected to inundate 61 miles (18% of town roads), while a 100-year flood could inundate 95 miles (28%) [CIT. 5]. Several roadways critical for emergency services are vulnerable, such as Route 6, Onset Avenue and Sandwich Road as well as roads in the Main Street/ Narrows area.

SALT MARSHES: Sixty nine percent (573 of 830 acres) of high marsh may be lost by flooding or conversion to low marsh. Overall, about 10% of total salt marsh (89 of 869 acres) may be completely lost to sea level rise [CIT. 6]. Low-lying areas such as the Leonard C. Lopes Memorial Park are projected to transition to salt marsh.

BEACHES: Seventeen miles of shoreline are classified as beach [CIT. 17], and 7.5 miles of the coastline are publicly accessible (28%) [CIT. 16]. Vulnerable areas include Swift’s Beach on the Wareham River and coastline along the many peninsulas that extend into Buzzards Bay.

““We’re trying to get economic development going, but along with that comes the responsibility for climate change, sea level rise, and what we do about the coastline.” ”
— KENNETH BUCKLAND, DIRECTOR OF PLANNING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

THE TOWN IDENTIFIED THE FOLLOWING RESILIENCE PRIORITIES [CIT. 36 AND 37]:

  • Resiliency strategies for low-lying roads, especially critical access routes and municipal facilities such as pump stations.

  • Adaptation of recreational areas for public shorefront access and to allow for salt marsh migration.

  • Planning for adaptation or retreat in vulnerable areas.