Energy Funds For All Logo

*Climate-Ready Coasts and Communities

Funding for: , , ,
Goal: , , , , ,

What is the current status of this program?

This funding is no longer available. If you want more incentives like this, tell your Federal, North Carolina, and South Carolina legislators. See below for examples of projects that were selected for awards in the Carolinas.

Any funding that had not yet been obligated for this program was eliminated in the budget reconciliation bill signed on July 4, 2025.

What does this funding get me?

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) funding of $2.6 billion was for direct federal spending, contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, and technical assistance.

Eligible uses included: 

  • Conservation restoration, and protection of coastal and marine habitats and resources, including fisheries, to enable coastal communities to prepare for extreme storms and other changing climate conditions
  • Projects that support natural resources that sustain coastal and marine resource-dependent communities, and related administrative expenses.

NOAA’s Climate-Ready Coasts and Communities program included:

NOAA was working with state, local, and Tribal governments, Tribes, Tribal and Native organizations, nonprofits, and the private sector in coastal and Great Lakes communities to develop and support durable, local capacity to adapt to climate change impacts, while growing economies, protecting fisheries, addressing environmental justice, and developing a climate-ready workforce.

Am I eligible?

Coastal states (as defined in the Coastal Zone Management Act), the District of Columbia, Tribal governments, nonprofit organizations, local governments, and institutions of higher education were eligible. 

How can I access the money?

This funding is no longer available.

What is the timeline?

Funds were scheduled to be available until September 30, 2026, but all funds that had not yet been awarded were eliminated in the budget reconciliation bill signed on July 4, 2025.

What other incentives could I use to help me accomplish my goals?

What are examples of projects that have been selected for awards?

Completing the Pamlico Sound Oyster Sanctuary and Training the Next Generation of Restoration Professionals
North Carolina Coastal Federation: $14.9 million
Funding Source: Transformational Habitat Restoration and Coastal Resilience Grants  
This project will restore nearly 120 acres of oyster habitat in Pamlico Sound, completing the 500-acre goal of the Jean Preston Memorial Oyster Sanctuary. Oyster restoration will provide direct benefits to key recreational and commercial species such as striped bass and wild oysters thereby supporting commercial and recreational fisheries and tourism businesses throughout the state’s coast. Additionally, NCCF will join with North Carolina State University’s Center for Marine Sciences and Technology and North Carolina Central University to provide hands-on opportunities for underrepresented graduate and undergraduate students studying marine sciences. 

North Carolina Large-scale Marine Debris and Abandoned and Derelict Vessel Removal
North Carolina Coastal Federation: $4.5 million
Funding Source: Marine Debris Removal Competition
This project will remove storm-related debris, lost fishing gear, and derelict vessels throughout coastal North Carolina. In addition, the project will seek to prevent marine debris that future storms generate through broad public outreach to increase awareness and encourage more resilient building techniques for waterfront structures.

Capacity Expansion to Support Habitat Restoration and Resilience in the Gullah Geechee Corridor  
Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor: $536,000
Funding Source: Coastal Habitat Restoration and Resilience Grants for Underserved Communities
The Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor will create new staff positions to expand their work creating a plan for restoration and resilience across the Corridor, which stretches from North Carolina through Florida. The new positions will help build relationships between restoration organizations and Gullah Geechee communities, identify the resilience priorities of community members, and form local advisory committees to support future restoration efforts.   

Bay River Coastal Land Conservation 
North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission: $500,000
Funding Source: Coastal Zone Management Habitat Protection and Restoration Grants
This investment will support the Bay River Coastal Partnership in the purchase and conservation of an ecologically significant coastal property within the over 400-acre Bay River Tract in Pamlico County. Conservation of this area will protect an undeveloped natural shoreline and rare coastal forest communities, minimize the loss of life and property by directing development out of a high risk area, and safeguard coastal water quality along the Bay River.

Co-creating Inclusive Community Resilience with Nature-based Solutions in the Coastal Carolinas
National Audubon Society: $499,000
Funding Source: Coastal Habitat Restoration and Resilience Grants for Underserved Communities
The National Audubon Society will work with coastal communities to identify and propose nature-based solutions that increase resilience to extreme weather and climate change. They will collaboratively create a suite of proposed projects that address the goals and challenges of Awendan and McClellanville, South Carolina, and Columbia and Tyrrell County, North Carolina. They will also hire community planners to support the process and help coordinate future restoration. 

Transforming the Scale and Equity of Living Shorelines in South Carolina
The Nature Conservancy: $6.2 million
Funding Source: Transformational Habitat Restoration and Coastal Resilience Grants
This investment will expand and significantly scale up the use of nature-based solutions for coastal resilience along the entire coastline of South Carolina. This work includes accelerating existing habitat efforts to prioritize and implement living shoreline projects in underserved communities, developing a plan to address statewide coastal risks in using large-scale nature-based solutions, and implementing a living shoreline demonstration project at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort. The project will partner with the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor to support an ongoing community ambassadors program, which will contribute to the long term buy-in and installation of living shoreline projects. An array of recreationally and commercially valuable fish species will benefit from the coastal habitat improvement. 

South Carolina’s Black River State Park Land Conservation Project in Georgetown County
South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control: $4.5 million
Funding Source: Coastal Zone Management Habitat Protection and Restoration Grants
This investment will allow conservation partners to conserve 1,800 acres of key floodplain properties within two coastal counties. The area will allow for recreational uses compatible with habitat protection, including fishing, non-motorized boating, birding, hiking, biking, kayaking, camping, picnicking, and environmental education. 

From Blue-Gray to Blue-Green: Facilitating the Transition to Non-Plastic Natural Material Use Within the Coastal Zone Economy
South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium: $2.6 million
Funding Source: Marine Debris Challenge Competition
This investment will catalyze the replacement of plastics with natural materials in South Carolina and the Southeast United States, including those used in coastal restoration, water quality protection and aquaculture initiatives, via testing from lab to mesocosm to field pilot scales, leveraging regional partnerships and community linkages for maximum impact. This project aims to strengthen connections between displaced/disenfranchised African American communities and coastal environmental sectors, enhance Historically Black Colleges and Universities’ research and educational capacity, inform K-12 students regarding  plastics pollution in South Carolina, and develop the next generation of cutting-edge environmental professionals.

Improving the Resilience of Salt Marsh Ecosystems within the ACE Basin through the Creation of Intertidal Oyster Reef Habitat
South Carolina Department of Natural Resource: $620,00
Funding Source: National Estuarine Research Reserve System Habitat Protection and Restoration Grants
This project will address salt marsh erosion and habitat loss, and generate essential fish habitat, by creating intertidal oyster reefs within the ACE Basin National Estuarine Research Reserve. The project will also promote salt marsh stewardship by engaging various stakeholder groups, including the use of volunteers, in the project implementation efforts. 

Capacity Expansion to Support Habitat Restoration and Resilience in the Gullah Geechee Corridor  
Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor: $536,000
Funding Source: Coastal Habitat Restoration and Resilience Grants for Underserved Communities
The Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor will create new staff positions to expand their work creating a plan for restoration and resilience across the Corridor, which stretches from North Carolina through Florida. The new positions will help build relationships between restoration organizations and Gullah Geechee communities, identify the resilience priorities of community members, and form local advisory committees to support future restoration efforts. 

Co-creating Inclusive Community Resilience with Nature-based Solutions in the Coastal Carolinas
National Audubon Society: $499,000
Funding Source: Coastal Habitat Restoration and Resilience Grants for Underserved Communities
The National Audubon Society will work with coastal communities to identify and propose nature-based solutions that increase resilience to extreme weather and climate change. They will collaboratively create a suite of proposed projects that address the goals and challenges of Awendan and McClellanville, South Carolina, and Columbia and Tyrrell County, North Carolina. They will also hire community planners to support the process and help coordinate future restoration. 

Gullah/Geechee CREATE: Coastal Debris Removal Engaging Artists through Environmental Cleanups
South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium: $299,000
Funding Source: Marine Debris Community Action Coalitions
This project will result in multiple community-based clean-up efforts across Gullah/Geechee communities in South Carolina. Cleanup event attendees will gain scientific literacy through collecting and entering marine debris data. The marine debris collected at these events will then be converted into artwork by local Gullah/Geechee artists, and subsequent showcase events will highlight the art installations in concert with marine debris education opportunities. Partners include the Gullah/Geechee Nation, the Gullah Geechee Chamber Foundation, and the Gullah Preservation Society.

The Lowcountry NETwork: Building a Coalition of Community Members, Shrimpers, Educators, and Conservationists to Remove and Recycle Marine Debris
South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium: $299,000
Funding Source: Marine Debris Community Action Coalitions
Trawl to Trash, an existing, successful Sea Grant program, engages the public in stewardship activities that educate communities about the impacts of marine debris and encourage use of upcycled stow bags made by commercial shrimpers from  nets that would have been discarded to prevent littering, and to collect and remove debris from waterways. This investment seeks to expand the program to additional communities that have commercial shrimping activity, to enhance education and outreach capacity, and to sustain a successful program with existing community partners while fostering new collaborations across South Carolina and Georgia coasts, including communities within the Gullah Geechee National Cultural Heritage Corridor, which is a federal National Heritage Area. Partners include University of Georgia Marine Extension, Georgia Sea Grant, and the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor. 

Where can I get more information?

Energy Funds For All Logo
FAQ
Resources
About Us
Testimonials
Success Stories
Contact