US government pulls funding for critical projects meant to protect communities: 'Now we have a bigger wedge to fill'

Boston is racing against the clock to prepare for higher tides, stronger storms, and rising floodwaters. But a major funding cut just made that mission harder — and put key coastal communities at risk — as reported by the Boston Globe.

What's happening?

Two of Boston's key coastal resilience projects — Moakley Park in South Boston and Tenean Beach in Dorchester — just lost millions in federal support. The funding, part of a disaster preparedness grant program, was scrapped due to spending cuts initiated by the current administration.

According to the Globe, the state of Massachusetts expected around $90 million from the program, including $23 million for Moakley Park and a proposed $12 million for Tenean Beach. Cities like Chelsea and Everett had also been counting on the funding mechanism for projects aimed at protecting against floods. Now all of them are left searching for alternatives.

Despite the blow, city leaders are forging ahead. "This is not delaying anything that the city of Boston has underway," Brian Swett, Boston's chief climate officer, told the paper. And yet, "it does present a challenge that now we have a bigger wedge to fill in terms of construction [costs]."

Why is this concerning?

The area, like so many coastal communities, is already vulnerable to the surges and floods that are intensifying with rising global temperatures brought on by heat-trapping pollution. As NBC10 Boston noted, less-than-stable landfill underlies one-sixth of the city. And the waterfront is already showing signs of strain. 

A map at Earth.org shows that sea levels in the region have risen about a foot since 1921, and a 2022 report from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted they would rise another foot by 2050. Without resilient infrastructure and innovative solutions, neighborhoods risk frequent flooding, public transit disruptions, and property damage.

And it's not just Boston. Dozens of towns across Massachusetts and across the United States — many without deep budgets or staff capacity — are now scrambling to rethink their flood protection plans in the wake of federal cuts.

Similar cuts have defunded climate-related work in other countries as well.

What's being done about it?

Boston says it isn't backing down from needed preparations. Instead, it's pushing ahead with a $250 million redesign of Moakley Park, which, as local outlet Caught in Southie describes, is "being redesigned not just as a green space but as a kind of sponge—to absorb stormwater and buffer the surrounding neighborhoods." 

Officials say they're exploring other funding options and are optimistic support will come through. "We're going to continue to do everything we can to make sure something comes from Washington," Swett told the Globe. "I don't think this is the end of the federal story of investment in this project."

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But the region is also investing in itself. NBC10 said Boston has "set aside $75 million of its own for climate resilience."

There's urgency because, as the state's energy and environmental affairs secretary Rebecca Tepper noted in a mid-April statement, each grant application, each grant award, each funding cut "represents a neighborhood that needs support."

State lawmakers across the U.S. continue to propose and plan for climate resilience work. And it's not only to reduce threats to the environment and human life, but to get ahead of the massive costs of future damage and destruction.

Some federal and state programs are continuing to fund this work too. Municipalities and individuals can consider tapping into tax rebates and credits tied to the Inflation Reduction Act to support community- and household-level climate adaptation. 

It's worth noting, meanwhile, that the Trump administration has signalled an intention to end these programs, so anyone hoping to benefit from them might consider acting sooner rather than later. Ending the IRA, though, would legally require an act of Congress.

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