"New York City’s Waterfront Revitalization Program (WRP), originally adopted in 1982, updated in 2002, and revised herein, is the city's principal Coastal Zone management tool. The guiding principle of the WRP is to maximize the benefits derived from economic development, environmental conservation, and public use of the waterfront, while minimizing the conflicts among these objectives. A local waterfront revitalization program, such as New York City's, is authorized by New York State’s Waterfront Revitalization of Coastal Areas and Inland Waterway Act, which stems from the Federal Coastal Zone Management Act." --Page 4.

Waterfronts are attractive areas for many—often competing—uses in New York City and are seen as multifunctional locations for economic, environmental, and social activities on the interface between land and water. The NYC waterfront plays a crucial role as a first line of flood defense and in managing flood risk and protecting the city from future climate change and sea-level rise. The city of New York has embarked on a climate adaptation program (PlaNYC) outlining the policies needed to anticipate the impacts of climate change. As part of this policy, the Department of City Planning is currently preparing Vision 2020: New York City Comprehensive Waterfront Plan for the over 500 miles of NYC waterfront (NYC-DCP, 2011). An integral part of the vision is to improve resilience to climate change and sea-level rise. The study presented in this volume seeks to provide guidance for advancing the goals of NYC Vision 2020 by assessing how flood insurance, flood zoning, and building code policies can contribute to waterfront development that is more resilient to climate change. NOTE: Annals volumes are available for sale as individual books or as a journal. For information on institutional journal subscriptions, please visit http://ordering.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/subs.asp?ref=1749-6632&doi=10.1111/(ISSN)1749-6632. ACADEMY MEMBERS: Please contact the New York Academy of Sciences directly to place your order (www.nyas.org). Members of the New York Academy of Science receive full-text access to the Annals online and discounts on print volumes. Please visit http://www.nyas.org/MemberCenter/Join.aspx for more information about becoming a member.