Broward County was the first county to join the American Flood Coalition.
Broward County, Florida, is a highly-urbanized coastal county located in the southeast peninsula of Florida, with 24 miles of beaches, 31 municipalities, and a population of approximately 1.9 million. Two-thirds of the County’s 1,323 square miles are part of the Everglades, undeveloped and protected a conservation area, with the remaining eastern third fully built out. Broward County’s international airport, seaport, and tourism sector are among the leading drivers of the local economy.
With its extensive coastline, flat landscape, and low land elevations, Broward County recognizes its vulnerabilities to sea level rise. Today, the County takes an integrated planning approach that addresses the combined impacts of sea level rise and severe rainfall across connected systems – water, wastewater, drainage, flood protection – from a community-wide scale down to the level of County government operations.
Broward County has also been a key partner in the four-county Southeast Florida Regional Climate Change Compact, a nationally- and internationally renowned regional collaborative dedicated to addressing shared climate mitigation and adaptation challenges. With the support of the County’s Environmental Planning and Community Resilience Division, the County has advanced sea level rise adaptation through progressive policy, planning, and investments.
Notable efforts include application of technical expertise and formal adoption of the Compact’s regional sea level rise projection for planning, beach dune, and resilient shorelines initiatives, updated regulatory standards to address sea level rise and future hydrologic conditions, and incorporation of sea level rise projections into land use planning.
Broward County is a ready partner in the collaborative processes and partnerships needed to expand the expertise, capacity, and resources essential to collective adaptation efforts and the resilience of our communities and economies.
