Coastal Hazard Vulnerability Project Launched In Dominica

Dominica has partnered with a full-scale engineering, construction, and management firm to reduce the coastal vulnerability of its citizens.

Smith Warner International (SWI) will spearheaded this project for coastal communities called the Coastal Hazard Vulnerability Project (CHVP). SWI is a company headquartered in Jamaica and has satellite offices in Canada, Saint Lucia, and Trinidad and Tobago.

With CHVP, the aim is to “improve access to data,” which will eventually strengthen “decision-making autonomy of communities, and key sectors of Dominica who are reliant on coastal resources.”

“With its ecosystem-based approach, the project tries to avoid fighting against the sea by looking for more sustainable solutions that work with the sea,” Dominica News Online wrote.

Two of Dominica’s main objectives in undertaking CHVP include “a comprehensive coastal erosion and vulnerability assessment, and a resilience publication.”

“We at Smith Warner did an assessment many years ago in 2007 so definitely now in 2023 technology is a lot more advanced. We have drones, much better satellite imagery, we are also going to do beach profiles assessment, and shoreline analysis,” said Gabrielle Abraham, a GIS specialist and Project Manager at SWI.