"The Army Corps of Engineers must consider the effects of climate change as it draws up plans for flood control, navigation and other water projects under a new agency policy.

The idea is to keep rising seas from swamping major federal investments.

'You don't want to make stupid large investments that are difficult or impossible to undo,' said Jeffrey Gebert, the Army Corps' chief of coastal planning in the Philadelphia district and a member of the team that drafted the policy.

In some cases, extra up-front investment could armor projects against worst-case scenarios, the policy's authors say. In others, the corps could leave room for future adjustments."

Taryn Luntz reports for Greenwire in the New York Times November 11, 2009.
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