Upscaling coastal nature-based solutions (NbSs), from the river to sea scale, essential to the ultimate success of restoration, requires larger investments, greater socio-economic engagement and a transformative shift in governance. Consequently, the ability to catalyze blended finance from public and private investors through business model innovation and accessibly written long-range business plans is imperative. This research proposes a methodology to systematically co-design, through iterative stakeholder engagement, suitable and effective business models for upscaling NbSs coastal restoration, as well as a framework to develop business plans adaptable to different investors needs and financial criteria. This method was tested and validated in a saltmarsh restoration project coordinated by public agencies in the Venice Lagoon. It delivered an advanced business model canvas, carefully assessed through a stakeholder questionnaire and a related business case centered on ecotourism complemented by a willingness-to-pay analysis. The resulting business plan lays out the governance, management, business and financial strategies for successful restoration, addressing specific interconnected issues, improving five main ecosystem services and delivering NbS multifunctional environmental, economic, social and cultural benefits. The methodology has proven to be applicable beyond the Venice Lagoon saltmarsh case and types of restoration projects.

This deliverable presents the generation of EUNIS habitat maps for Europe as a whole and for each of the pilot areas in REST-COAST. Subsequently, it presents the assignment of semi-quantitative scores for the contribution of each EUNIS (sub)habitat to the five key ecosystem services applying the rank scale 0 (none), 1 (very low contribution), 2 (low contribution), 3 (medium contribution), 4 (high contribution) to 5 (very high contribution). It also describes the assignment of the IUCN Red List of Habitats to each of the depicted EUNIS (sub)habitats in the pilot areas. And finally, to assess coastal system behaviour and restoration effects on ecosystem services and biodiversity gains under climate change, a homogenised score card methodology is presented to overcome the problem of comparing minor changes (some percents) with major changes (tens of percents) in the total scores for ESS or BDV in each pilot area.

Coastal regions provide some of the most productive and biodiverse environments with an important and often underappreciated carbon storage potential. At the same time, they are among the areas of highest population density, natural assets and cultural heritage in the world, yet are experiencing significant social, economic and environmental challenges, exacerbated by climate change and human pressures.The REST-COAST project (Large scale RESToration of COASTal ecosystems through rivers to sea connectivity) will demonstrate to what extent upscaled coastal restoration can provide a low-carbon adaptation, reducing risks and providing gains in biodiversity for vulnerable coastal ecosystems, such as wetlands or sea grass beds. By overcoming present technical, economic, governance and social barriers to restoration upscaling, REST-COAST will develop the large scale river-coast connectivity and increase the nearshore accommodation space for the resilient delivery of coastal ecosystem services (ESs). The selected ESs (risk reduction, environmental quality and fish provisioning) touch urgent coastal problems such as the erosion/flooding during recent storms or the accelerating coastal habitat degradation that seriously affects fisheries and aquaculture. Combining new techniques, risk assessments, innovative financial/governance arrangements and homogeneous metrics for ESs and biodiversity, REST-COAST will develop a systemic approach to coastal restoration based on a scalable coastal adaptation plan.