Tiburon hires consultant to prepare for rising sea levels

Waves crash over the riprap onto the walking path at Tiburon’s Shoreline Park on Nov. 5 during light showers and strong gusts that coincided with king tides exceeding 7 feet. A state-mandated sea-level-rise vulnerability assessment and adaptation study will examine the threat to downtown. (Ted McDonnell / For The Ark)

Tiburon will spend nearly $600,000 in state grant money to hire a consultant to plan how the town will address rising sea levels threatening its shorelines.

The Town Council voted 3-0 Nov. 5 to approve a contract with multinational firm Moffatt and Nichol for the work, which will cost $593,877 using funds awarded in June by the California Ocean Protection Council.

All coastal jurisdictions are required to create a sea-level-rise vulnerability assessment and adaptation plan, known formally as a Subregional Shoreline Adaptation Plan, by 2034 under Senate Bill 272.

Grace Ledwith, Tiburon’s climate action and sustainability coordinator, said while the county has done various vulnerability assessments and sea-level rise studies, none covered town-specific vulnerabilities and assets.

“This will be a first-time effort really diving into our specific concerns,” Ledwith told councilmembers.

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