Relocation to Restoration: Community-led relocation planning and habitat restoration in the Mississippi Sound

The Cherokee Forest is a small subdivision of approximately 210 parcels located in a high risk flood zone and situated at the edge of Pascagoula’s industrial corridor. Many residents came together in 2013 to form Cherokee Concerned Citizens (CCC) and organize for a buyout.

Buy-in began working with the CCC in 2022 to initiate efforts to explore voluntary buyout programs for residents. We conducted a household survey to determine how many residents are interested in a buyout and determine preliminary costs.

The survey indicated that 90% of Cherokee Forest residents are either interested in a buyout or seek more information about it, with 74% expressing a desire to relocate as soon as possible.

In March 2024, Buy-In secured a grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to implement the first of its kind community-led planning process to develop a plan to relocate willing residents of Cherokee Forest and convert their property into a blue/green buffer. Given the personal connections and responsibilities with the city and its businesses, Cherokee Forest residents envision restoring the land back into marsh and forest in order to protect the other homes from industrial emissions, flooding, and storm surge.

The project is currently in the planning and capacity-building phase, with a focus on inclusive multi-stakeholder engagement to identify shared priorities and win-win outcomes, maximizing public health and environmental benefits for Jackson County residents. This project demonstrates how managed retreat can be more than just a crisis response—it can be a pathway toward restoring health and habitat.

The Relocation to Restoration (R2R) effort can serve as a model for nature-based resilience, with measurable benefits across systems.

Economic

• Reduced disaster recovery costs: A restored buffer can reduce flood exposure for surrounding neighborhoods, helping lower public costs associated with storm damage, debris cleanup, and infrastructure repair.

• Increased eligibility for lower insurance rates: The City of Pascagoula could include a restored Cherokee Forest neighborhood in their application for an improved CRS score, showing both the removal of property from flood risk and the increased flood mitigation for communities behind the new blue green buffer. This would reduce NFIP insurance rates for City homeowners holding NFIP policies.

• Long-term return on investment (ROI): Based on national modeling, each $1 invested in resilience yields up to $13 in avoided losses.

• Enhanced property values nearby: A restored green space in Cherokee Forest may stabilize or increase land value in adjacent neighborhoods

Community Health

• Improved air quality: Tree cover and wetlands can act as natural air filters, reducing particulate matter and capturing industrial pollutants drifting from the Bayou Casotte complex. According to USDA Conservation Buffers 2008 General Technical Report, a 65ft to 600ft buffer may reduce particulate matter pollution by 45% to 75%.

• Mental and physical health benefits: Access to green space—whether for recreation or passive enjoyment—has been shown to improve cardiovascular and psychological well-being.

• Reduced heat stress: Vegetative buffers can lower surface and ambient temperatures, offering urban heat reduction.

Ecological

• Wetland and forest restoration: A blue-green buffer encouraging growth of diverse native species could support biodiversity, enhance coastal resilience, and re-establishes habitat for migratory birds and native species.

• Habitat for birds and pollinators: The buffer could serve as a stopover or nesting site for migratory waterfowl, wading birds, and coastal songbirds. Species like the Prothonotary Warbler, Swallow-Tailed Kite, and Little Blue Heron have been observed in nearby habitats.

• Stormwater retention and filtration: Green-blue infrastructure can slow and clean runoff, reducing pollutant loads in Chicot Bayou and downstream areas.

• Carbon sequestration potential: Reforestation and marshland restoration can store carbon and contribute to local climate mitigation goals.

Reputational

• Demonstrates local leadership on hazard mitigation and public health: For the mayor and city officials, supporting the restoration of Cherokee Forest signals bold, proactive leadership on responsible business practices, risk reduction, and long-term community resilience. This could lead to state or national recognition for leading stakeholders.

• Enhances credibility with federal and philanthropic funders: Visible investment in relocation and restoration can help Pascagoula and Jackson County compete for grants that prioritize community health and safety and nature-based solutions.

• Strengthens community trust in industry partners: Investing in, or endorsing, restoration helps build community trust and demonstrates a genuine commitment to being responsible neighbors. Supporting a blue/green buffer is responsible business and reflects Environment Social and Governance (ESG) values by protecting residents, workers, and the environment and reducing future liabilities.

Alignment with State and Local Plans

The proposed relocation-to-restoration strategy for Cherokee Forest is aligned with Mississippi’s statewide hazard mitigation priorities, regional coastal resilience goals, and site-specific watershed assessments. The following provide policy and technical justification for prioritizing this project.

Mississippi State Hazard Mitigation Plan (2023): The 2023 State of Mississippi Hazard Mitigation Plan, developed by the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA), lists drainage and stormwater improvements, as well as acquisition and relocation of repetitive loss properties, as eligible mitigation strategies. The plan encourages nature-based solutions and green infrastructure to reduce future flood losses and improve community resilience. The Cherokee Forest restoration project aligns with several core priorities of this plan:

• Restoration of vacant and flood-prone land to improve natural drainage, reduce runoff, and lower community-wide flood risk.

• Use of green infrastructure (e.g., riparian buffers, wetlands, rain gardens) to enhance stormwater retention and improve public safety.

• Voluntary property buyouts for at-risk parcels located in FEMA Flood Zone AE. (The presence of multiple parcels already identified as vacant, combined with strong resident support for relocation, presents an opportunity for MEMA to demonstrate a model mitigation project)

Nature Conservancy Conservation Action Plan for Chicot Bayou (2017): This watershed-scale plan by The Nature Conservancy outlines conservation and restoration goals for Chicot Bayou, which runs through Cherokee Forest . It identifies the lower Chicot watershed as a priority zone for:

• Reducing nonpoint source pollution

• Reconnecting wetlands

• Improving wildlife habitat and migratory bird corridors

The proposed green-blue buffer along the southeastern portion of Cherokee Forest directly supports these goals by converting industrial-adjacent land into native forest and marsh, enhancing water quality, biodiversity, and ecosystem function within the Chicot Bayou sub-watershed.

Mississippi Coastal Improvements Program (MsCIP): The MsCIP, led by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, was established after Hurricane Katrina to develop long-term strategies for reducing coastal storm damage and enhancing environmental resilience. It prioritizes:

• Ecosystem restoration in coastal floodplains

• Integration of flood risk management and habitat enhancement

• Multi-agency partnerships to implement coastal resilience solutions

The Cherokee Forest could be designed to align with the type of dual-purpose investment envisioned under MsCIP—reducing risk through voluntary retreat and green space restoration, while improving habitat quality and supporting conservation objectives.

Thanks to the support of our diverse team of community leaders and experts, we are confident that we will create a robust strategy for relocation and restoration. For more information about this project and ways you can get involved, please contact Jennifer Crosslin at jennifer@betterbuyout.com

Project Partners

Steering Committee: Buy-in and Cherokee Concerned Citizens

Technical Delivery Partners

• ONE Architecture and Urbanism

• Climate Resilience Consulting

Technical Advisory Panel (TAP)

• Andrew Whitehurst, Water Program Director, Healthy Gulf

• John Ben Soileau, Program Officer, National Academy of Sciences

• Dr. Katharine Duderstadt, Research Scientists, University of New Hampshire

• Caroline Frischmon, Graduate Student Researchers, University of Colorado

• Dr. Jennifer Baka, Associate Professor of Geography, Penn State University

• David Perkes, Executive Director, Gulf Coast Community Design Studio

• Stephen Deal, Extension Specialist, MS-AL Sea Grant

• Dr. Jennifer Debose, Research Coordinator, Grand Bay NERR

• Renee Collini, Director of Community Resilience Center, Water Institute

• Dr. Abbey Hotard, Associate Professor, University of South Alabama

• Emily Monroe, Anthropocene Alliance

TAP members visit Cherokee Forest in February 2025.