CAPE of STORMS

This report, produced by the Stockholm Environment Institute, the African Centre for Cities, and the City of Cape Town, examines the risks posed by climate change and rising sea levels to the Cape Town coastline. It advocates for a shift from traditional 'hard' engineering solutions toward a 'no regrets' approach centered on nature conservation and social-institutional fixes, specifically through the implementation of a coastal setback line to manage development and protect vulnerable ecosystems.

• Cape Town's coastline is highly vulnerable to climate change, with 25 square kilometers of land already at risk from storm surges and rising tides. The built environment within the 2.5-meter contour is valued at R5 billion, and researchers have identified 23 specific 'hotspots' particularly susceptible to storm surges, including Milnerton Beach, Saltriver, Green Point, Sea Point, Bakoven Cottages, Camps Bay, Kalk Bay, Strandfontein Road, and Strand.
• The report argues that traditional 'hard' engineering fixes—such as sea walls, rock armour, and gabions—are often costly, irreversible, and can create a false sense of security that encourages risky development. Instead, the City of Cape Town is pursuing a 'no regrets' approach that prioritizes the protection of wetlands, estuaries, and dune cordons, prohibits additional land reclamation from the sea, and plans for the relocation of infrastructure in high-risk areas.
• A central policy recommendation is the implementation of a 'setback line,' a demarcated buffer zone where development is either forbidden or strictly controlled. This 'soft' approach is supported by 'overlay zones' that apply specific development criteria based on risk profiles. The goal is to allow ecosystems to be restored to provide a natural defense against the sea while defining nodal growth areas for sustainable development.
• Coastal management in Cape Town is complicated by historical socio-economic inequalities and fragmented governance. The report notes that black, coloured, and Indian South Africans were historically excluded from owning property or using certain beaches, a legacy that complicates current decisions on coastal access. Additionally, management is hindered by overlapping jurisdictions between local, provincial, and national government departments.
• The report emphasizes that sea level rise is a long-term, nearly irreversible process, describing it as the 'super tanker' of climate change. Even if atmospheric warming stopped immediately, oceans would continue to expand for over a century, necessitating a flexible, 'multi-criteria' approach to risk assessment that considers environmental impact, reversibility, and the prevention of risk transfer to poor communities.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (2013). CAPE of STORMS. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/sei-fliccr-capeofstorms-2013.pdf

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. CAPE of STORMS. 2013. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/sei-fliccr-capeofstorms-2013.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=CAPE of STORMS |date=2013 |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/sei-fliccr-capeofstorms-2013.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitute2013cape, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{CAPE of STORMS}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2013}, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/sei-fliccr-capeofstorms-2013.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }