$1 Million Grant From Bank of America Helps The Nature Conservancy Explore Scaling a Coral Reef Insurance Product in Florida ...
24 Settembre 2019 - 5:00PM
Business Wire
Insurance for Coral Reefs Help Boost Resiliency
for Coastal Communities
With the first-ever insurance policy for a coral reef in place
on the Mesoamerican Reef in Mexico, The Nature Conservancy (TNC),
with support from Bank of America, today announced plans to
research the expansion of an innovative, nature-based insurance
program that expedites the repair of coral reefs after major
storms.
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Today’s announcement of an additional $1 million grant from Bank
of America enables TNC’s scientists to conduct studies in both
Florida and Hawaii to identify where coral reef insurance and
improved reef management could provide an innovative and
cost-effective solution to coastal flooding and other risks related
to major storm events. This initiative adds to the bank’s initial
$1 million grant in 2016 that funded a feasibility study for the
one-of-a-kind reef insurance concept and policy in Mexico.
“TNC and its partners proved that insuring coral reefs was
possible in Mexico,” said Mark Way, director of Global Coastal Risk
and Resilience for The Nature Conservancy. “Now, we are ready to
scale this work. The Nature Conservancy is very grateful to the
Bank of America Charitable Foundation for its vital, early stage
support of our efforts to produce market-driven, nature-based
solutions for coastal resilience.”
Reef insurance is a promising model allowing countries to
simultaneously protect its residents, nature, and property. By
safeguarding the natural infrastructure coral reefs provide, lives
and livelihoods of countless people around the globe can be
protected — as well as potentially billions of dollars of
infrastructure.
Globally, coral reefs face multiple threats, including those
from hurricanes. The reefs of Hawaii and Florida provide both
states a high level of protection. It is estimated that annually
the value of that protection to property and economic activity is
over $1.5 billion. Given this, and building on TNC’s work in
Mexico, assessing the potential for expanding reef insurance to
Florida and Hawaii presents an exciting opportunity for the future
of valuing and protecting nature.
“By working with partners like The Nature Conservancy, we are
able to support the development and implementation of innovative
solutions to climate resiliency, water security, conservation and
other environmental challenges,” said Andrew Plepler, global head
of Environmental, Social and Governance at Bank of America.
“Through our sustainable finance efforts and philanthropic support,
projects like this can be scaled and replicated, building a more
sustainable economy and climate resilient communities.”
A New Way to Protect Coral Reefs The Mesoamerican Reef is
a crucial link in the natural and economic ecosystems of Quintana
Roo, Mexico. It protects the state’s coastline from storms and is
part of a beautiful landscape that attracts 12 million tourists
each year.1 Reefs take time to reproduce and heal after a storm.
The sooner the repair process begins, for example by removing
debris, reattaching broken-off coral pieces or righting coral that
has been knocked over, the better the chance of a successful
recovery after the storm.
Hurricane damage to reefs can be repaired with skilled cleanup
and repair efforts. Financing these repairs requires sufficient
funding. That is where the reef insurance comes in. In Quintana
Roo, the state government with support from TNC set up the Coastal
Zone Management Trust, which will receive revenues from a fee paid
by local beachfront property owners. The trust will use these
revenues to maintain the reef and purchase an insurance policy that
is designed to distribute funds quickly after a major hurricane.
This unique approach ensures critical funding for this section of
the Mesoamerican Reef.
“Early analysis of enabling conditions required for reef
insurance suggests that there is enormous potential to scale this
work to coral reefs domestically and internationally,” said Way.
“In addition to Florida and Hawaii, we are currently exploring
opportunities to expand the approach in the Caribbean, Central
America, and Asia.”
Bank of America has partnered with The Nature Conservancy for
over 40 years. Since 2012, the bank has provided $3.5 million in
grant funding to the nonprofit to advance conservation efforts.
1
https://www.nature.org/en-us/newsroom/the-nature-conservancy-and-the-government-of-quintana-roo-announce-innovativ/
The Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy is a global
conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and
waters on which all life depends. Guided by science, we create
innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world's toughest
challenges so that nature and people can thrive together. We are
tackling climate change, conserving lands, waters and oceans at an
unprecedented scale, providing food and water sustainably and
helping make cities more sustainable. Working in 72 countries, we
use a collaborative approach that engages local communities,
governments, the private sector, and other partners. To learn more,
visit www.nature.org or follow @nature_press on Twitter.
Bank of America At Bank of America, we’re guided by a common
purpose to help make financial lives better, through the power of
every connection. We’re delivering on this through responsible
growth with a focus on our environmental, social and governance
(ESG) leadership. ESG is embedded across our eight lines of
business and reflects how we help fuel the global economy, build
trust and credibility, and represent a company that people want to
work for, invest in and do business with. It’s demonstrated in the
inclusive and supportive workplace we create for our employees, the
responsible products and services we offer our clients, and the
impact we make around the world in helping local economies thrive.
An important part of this work is forming strong partnerships with
nonprofits and advocacy groups, such as community, consumer and
environmental organizations, to bring together our collective
networks and expertise to achieve greater impact. Learn more at
about.bankofamerica.com, and connect with us on Twitter
(@BofA_News).
For more Bank of America news, including dividend announcements
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190924005608/en/
Reporters May Contact: Rachel Winters, The Nature Conservancy,
1.267.210.2189 rwinters@tnc.org Kelly Sapp, Bank of America,
1.980.214.3070 kelly.e.sapp@bofa.com
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