| The Coastal Barrier Resources Act of 1982 (CBRA) removes federal subsidies that encourage development on designated "undeveloped" areas of coastal barriers---long, narrow bars of sand found along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts. CBRA departs from traditional approaches to conserving natural resources, such as regulations or acquisition. The act seeks to conserve coastal resources simply by withdrawing development-inducing subsidies. The act prohibits federal financial assistance for roads, bridges, flood insurance, utilities, erosion control, and post-storm disaster relief for new development on designated "undeveloped" areas of coastal barriers. Yet, several designated coastal barriers developed anyway. This research explains why development has occurred in some CBRA-designated areas, despite the withdrawal of federal subsidies. Specifically, it examines the impact of (1) CBRA, (2) state and local policies and (3) coalitions for and against growth, dubbed advocacy coalitions, on the amount of development that has occurred in areas designated under the act. Using case studies of selected Coastal Barrier Resources System (CBRS) units as well as surveys of state coastal managers and key informants, the research shows that CBRA, by itself, will not prevent development from occurring in CBRA-designated areas. In addition, the research shows that government policies and advocacy coalitions can play a crucial role in shaping development in CBRS units. |
