ABSTRACT

Scholars and practitioners are placing increased emphasis on the concept of resilient coastal communities (Beatley, 2009). Rapid population growth and development in low-lying areas combined with persistent storm events have placed millions of residents in the U.S. in harm’s way. Nowhere is this problem more apparent than along the Gulf of Mexico coast (Brody et al., 2008). From 2000 to 2005, Gulf coast county/parish floods caused over $52 billion in overall flood damage with $19 billion reported through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). With mounting losses accruing from both acute and chronic flood events, attention is being placed on how to develop more resilient coastal communities over the long term. However, little empirical research has been conducted on the causes and consequences of environmental factors contributing to resiliency that may provide guidance to policy makers on the Gulf coast. Even less work has been done to assess the differences between rural and urban coastal communities.