The Edgartown Lighthouse stands at the gateway to the Edgartown harbor, a symbol of hope and refuge. Like all historic and cultural sites, it provides us with a sense of identity and connects us through time.

As an Island community, many such sites are by the shore and are at risk from sea level rise, flooding and erosion. Some can be protected, at least for a time, like the Gay Head Light which was moved four years ago. Others are at risk for possible loss as seas rise and storms grow more intense.

About a third of the Martha’s Vineyard Camp Meeting Association lies in the 100-year floodplain. Vulnerable cottages could be raised above the flood elevation but that might diminish their charm and historical significance. If they are not raised they may flood. What a conundrum. Either way the land will be wet. A 2018 Union of Concerned Scientists report on sea level rise and real estate noted that “even if living spaces stay dry, if the access roads, surrounding land, and key infrastructure are flooded, home values and tourism would be adversely affected.” The Camp Ground board of directors is reviewing options.

Island lighthouses, the fishing village at Menemsha, Memorial Wharf in Edgartown are other areas of concern. The town of Edgartown is planning to raise the wharf, similar to what was done recently with the Edgartown Yacht Club and the Vose family boathouse.

The Vineyard Trust owns and maintains several vulnerable buildings on the Edgartown waterfront, including the Old Sculpin Gallery, formerly a whale oil factory and boat builder’s shed, the Norton boathouse and Osborne Wharf. The Flying Horses Carousel, also owned by the Trust, is also in the floodplain.

The Vineyard Trust is currently working with the town of Edgartown on adaptation planning. Last year the town received a Massachusetts Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Program action grant for an infrastructure vulnerability assessment.

Aside from raising structures and managed retreat, what are the options for preserving historic structures? In 2016 the Newport Restoration Foundation in Rhode Island organized a Keeping History Above Water Conference. Options discussed included allowing water to flow though threatened structures, turning basements into cisterns, installing building-sized flotation systems, and even re-plumbing entire neighborhoods to direct storm water and high tides out of the way.

But more than just structures, including many historic homes located on the waterfront, are in harm’s way.

Several sites on the African-American Heritage Trail of Martha’s Vineyard are vulnerable to sea level rise. They include a site commemorating the rescue of fugitive Randall Burton at Menemsha, and another site honoring the life of Rebecca Martin at the Old Marine Cemetery in Oak Bluffs. How do we commemorate historic sites that disappear?

Other valued natural land forms are expected to change dramatically in the face of erosion and battering from strong storms.

The Gay Head Cliffs, a historic site that holds great cultural significance for the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah), are eroding are eroding by about a foot a year, according to the Martha’s Vineyard Commission. The rate is expected to rise as storm surges increase. Old traditions of collecting the cliff clay, climbing the cliffs and taking clay baths have long been prohibited.

Inkwell Beach in Oak Bluffs is akin to a community center for generations of African Americans. Backed by a concrete seawall, as the sea rises and beach nourishment becomes untenable, the Inkwell and other Oak Bluffs beaches that abut seawalls could be facing the autumn of their lives.

All these Island at-risk historic structures and sites could be identified, possibly using Community Preservation Act (CPA) funds. Provincetown, a sister coastal community at the tip of Cape Cod, has set a precedent by using CPA funds to protect some of the town’s 500-plus registered historic buildings.

Not only do historic and cultural sites connect us to our past, they also have economic value. The Island exudes a sense of timelessness. Lighthouses, clay cliffs, old whaling homes and Camp Ground cottages are as much of a draw as the beaches and coastal ponds.

Protecting our history and culture may not be a top priority on the climate agenda, but it is a critical bridge to the future. It deserves attention. This is our place, physically, socially and emotionally, and how we got here matters.

Liz Durkee lives in Oak Bluffs.