Abstract
The Living Shorelines GIS Database for South Florida incorporates 2,767 digitized dune features and 62 shore protection projects. The spatial extent of the database encompasses Palm Beach County, Broward County, and the Miami-Dade County shoreline up to Key Biscayne. The database is a tool to study and promote shoreline resilience along the Southeast coastline. The Living Shorelines GIS Database for South Florida was intended to serve as a pilot study to support development of a spatially-explicit decision support tool for shoreline management that can enhance coastal resilience and sustainability. Vegetated shorelines or a combination of plant communities and shoreline stabilization projects can attenuate wave action, dissipate wave energy, and mitigate erosional forces. The successful implementation of such projects is particularly important in the context of sea level rise which will most likely amplify the shoreline management challenges faced by residents, planners, coastal managers, and decision makers. The database and this report reflect my understanding of the importance of dune vegetation and shore protection projects designed to improve our response to coastal hazards and protect economic and cultural resources.