Center for the Inland Bays leader urges coordinated county land-use reforms as seas rise

Kristoff Tulu, executive director of the Center for the Inland Bays, told a town committee in Bethany Beach that county land-use choices and climate-driven sea-level rise are creating recurring flooding and other stresses that local governments and residents must plan for.

"Our atmosphere is warming, our oceans are expanding, our ice is melting, our seas are rising," Tulu said, attributing higher water levels and more frequent flooding to those changes and to past development patterns. He urged a mix of conservation and targeted development to keep ‘‘spongy’’ land — trees, wetlands and permeable ground — in place to absorb stormwater.

Tulu described a Sussex County land-use reform working group that met March through September and produced 20 recommendations addressing where growth should happen, infrastructure timing and protection of natural resources. He said the group included developers, conservation advocates, housing representatives and state agencies and that the package was intended to be integrated rather than a pick‑and‑choose menu.

"The package is really important. This was not presented as a menu of options," he said, urging residents to review the final report on the county website and press council members to follow through.

Committee members asked whether the county would implement all 20 recommendations or prioritize a subset. Tulu said some items are ordinance changes that could move quickly while others require comprehensive-plan work; he said the county accelerated its schedule for incorporating changes into the county comprehensive plan (noting a cited planning target around 2028) to allow an earlier start.

Tulu also warned of economic consequences as insurers reassess coastal risk. He said insurers may decline to underwrite in the highest-risk areas, a move that can complicate mortgage transactions and depress property values. He suggested resilience investments at property and community levels and discussed the possibility of working with insurers to create incentives — for example, lower premiums when resilient measures are installed.

Tulu pointed to early signs of federal support for coastal work: he said a recent appropriations package advanced by the congressional delegation included roughly $12 million for Delaware beach replenishment and that the Water Resources Development Act continues to be a vehicle for Corps-authorized projects. He encouraged coordinated action among municipalities, the county and state agencies — including DELDOT and state planning officials — to align infrastructure investments with where future growth is appropriate.

The committee discussion emphasized practical local steps: continuing homeowner outreach about on‑site measures to reduce runoff, exploring a town tree ordinance and monitoring county actions on the working-group recommendations. The meeting ended with Tulu urging sustained civic pressure so the recommendations do not collect dust on a shelf.