NORFOLK, Va. — The Ryan Resilience Lab is a new facility in Norfolk that explores how rising sea levels will affect us all.
The lab considers which green building practices and systems should be used to combat climate change. The hope is that it will lead the way for a more sustainable future as the river prepares to retake the site as sea levels continue to rise.
I got an exclusive visit on a day where our News 3 team went out to volunteer with the next phase of the living lab.
“It's built to flood," said Luisa Black Ellis, the Elizabeth River Project’s Resilience Manager.
I toured the "living lab for a warming world" as it neared completion.
“We built it in a floodplain knowing that, you know, Norfolk has the highest rate of sea level rise of anywhere on the East Coast,” said Black Ellis.
She tells me it’s a situation a lot of people are currently in with their own homes.
A poll by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication shows that in Norfolk, three quarters of the population is worried about the risk of climate change.
Making a plan to prevent the adverse impacts of climate change can be daunting. Black Ellis says the Elizabeth River Project hopes the building will demonstrate solutions for concerned residents.
“As we were designing this building, we really wanted to think about, how can we make this sustainable? And how can we make it sustainable to the point that the average homeowner and business owner can use these systems?” said Black Ellis.
The building itself has systems that anyone can buy and install in their own homes, such as solar panels that create electricity, a green roof, gutters, and walls that will collect water for use in their toilets. The building also features a green wall of coral honeysuckle vines that will passively reduce the need for heating in the winter and cooling in the summer.
If you’re interested in installing these systems, the Elizabeth River Project has in-house experts to help you understand them. They also offer resources for some cost-sharing programs.
Inside, there are also many clever features, such as carpeting made from recycled fishing nets found at the bottom of the ocean.
“Where I'm standing here, this is approximately the location where the water level will be by about 2060,” said Joe Rieger, the Elizabeth River Project’s Deputy Director of Restoration.
Rieger tells me that in about 60 to 80 years, sea levels will rise about six feet, which is why the thousands of native plants and grasses planted along their shoreline are so important: they act as a living sponge, preventing erosion.
“So, what you see the volunteers doing here today is planting around seven to eight different species of plants,” said Rieger. “They are planting it out so that the root systems take hold and hold the sand in place. And it provides habitat for fishes in the in the river, and also provides the ability to adapt to sea level rise.”
Apart from being beautiful, these shoreline plantings create a natural buffer that helps absorb 70 to 80 percent of the wave action.
“This site is probably the most exciting and important thing we’ve done to engage even more people, even more of our community, and what they can do to help the Elizabeth River,” said the Elizabeth River Project’s Executive Director, Marjorie Mayfield Jackson.
It’s why Mayfield Jackson tells me she hopes the Ryan Resilience Lab will help lead the way as an example for a more sustainable future and encourage others to adapt to the changing climate.
“It’s really terrific, the degree to which the community has rallied behind the river coming back. And I think when people see dolphins and otters and crabs... it really brings home how having a living river is such a magical part of your life,” said Mayfield Jackson. “[There's] such a sense of hope to be able to bring back your home river in the midst of what’s often a sense of despair about the environment today."
“It's really hard for the average person to kind of find their way in and understand what they can do,” said Black Ellis. “So, what we're trying to do here is build grassroots resilience for the river, a resilience that everyone can be a part of.”
Their grand opening is scheduled for next spring, but they’re going to have a couple cool events kicking off later this month in the meantime.
And if you’re interested you can also sign up to take your own tour of the Ryan Resilience Lab. You can check out those how to attend those events and sign up for tours here.
