On April 14, SanCap Resilience submitted a position paper to the Sanibel City Council, city manager and planning director calling for a comprehensive integration of resiliency planning into future updates to the Sanibel Plan.

The coalition reported that the paper is consistent with the city’s strategic goal to address community resiliency. It presents a framework for how the city can integrate resiliency in the plan, including a list of examples of what that might involve. In addition, the paper acknowledges the forethought of city founders in the drafting of the plan, including the identification of over development as an existential threat to the city and its vision.

“While prescient, the authors of the Sanibel Plan could not have foreseen the accelerating impacts of climate change that we are facing now, 50 years later. Sea level rise, stronger storms, alternating flood and drought risk, increased storm surge, more high heat days, and increased fire risk are only some of the threats that represent profound challenges that will require the addition of new sets of solutions, especially for a barrier-island community. These threats stand to impact Sanibel residents and business owners directly, having a detrimental effect on future property values, insurance costs, personal health and safety, protection of beaches and the natural spaces that enhance quality of life, and more,” the paper states.

“At the 50-year anniversary of Sanibel’s founding, we again have the opportunity to be forward-thinking. It is important that the Sanibel Plan be updated to integrate the resiliency measures required to address these threats. Specifically, it is time to acknowledge that climate change is also an existential threat to Sanibel, on-par with development pressure, and deserving of the same vigilance by the Sanibel community. This recommendation supports the city council’s strategic goal for community resiliency and the city’s intention to integrate ‘community resiliency’ into the Sanibel Plan during the 2024 update,” it continues.

“Sanibel should be a leader in sensible, effective, measures to address the various threats presented by climate change, in the same way it is a recognized leader in resisting development pressure and promoting sustainable measures to live in harmony with our natural systems,” the paper adds.

The paper is supported by the partner organizations in the coalition, including the America’s Boating Club of Sanibel-Captiva, Children’s Education Center of the Islands, Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife, Committee of the Islands, Community Housing & Resources, “Ding” Darling Wildlife Society-Friends of the Refuge, F.I.S.H. of Sanibel-Captiva, Lee County Chapter of Climate Reality, SanCap Chamber of Commerce, Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation, Sanibel-Captiva Renewable Energy Working Group and Sanibel Strong.

To view the paper, visit https://bit.ly/3JwvKsS.

SanCap Resilience seeks to support broad-based community engagement on the topic and invites comments and feedback from the community regarding the paper. Comments can be sent to info@sancapresilience.org.