The Coastal Storms Program is a NOAA-led initiative that brings together organizations from all sectors to a specific region for the sole purpose of making communities safer from coastal storms. Each Coastal Storms Program initiative lasts three to five years and brings additional manpower, focus, and funding toward this goal.

The goal of the program is to reduce loss of life and negative impacts on coastal property and the environment caused by coastal storms. The results include the development of user-driven products that address storm risks in a targeted regional context. Partnerships with federal, state, and local organizations are key to the success of the program and to NOAA’s ability to increase the resilience (ability to “bounce back”) of coastal communities from storm impacts. An important component of the program is the outreach coordinator, who is located in the region and plays a key role in targeting regional needs and producing the products that are most relevant to local needs.

The strength of the program comes from its collaborative nature. Projects are selected according to the needs of the community and the capabilities of NOAA to meet those needs. Each region is affected by different hazards and complications, so each region requires its own individually tailored set of tools and services. A targeted outreach program ensures that community members are aware of the availability of the products and services developed by the Coastal Storms Program.

Tools created by the program often are applicable outside of the region for which they were created. Specifics can be found throughout this website. General examples are listed below.

Potential products developed from Coastal Storm Program project areas:

• New data that make navigation safer, improve flooding forecasts/warnings, and are incorporated into vulnerability assessments
• Better access to observations, modeling and real-time hazard information for planning and evacuation purposes
• Coastal storm hazard and climate adaptation planning
• Coastal inundation tools and visualizations for coastal managers
• Grants program that addresses risk and build community resilience