According to Orrin Pilkey —one of the most respected marine geologists in the field, after whom the building is named— to address sea level rise is to avoid building on the coast, basically to retreat from the beach. Though this is not possible for an island campus, Duke University Marine Laboratory addresses sea level rise by technically resisting hurricane-force winds and future floodwaters but also by visually conveying the issue.

Critical programs, such as the research laboratories and expensive instruments, are placed well above the 100-year flood and projected increases in storm surge intensity. The ground floor was designed to allow inundation without damage to equipment or to fixed building elements. It also led to a relatively solid expression for the building to maximize wall space for equipment and storage while minimizing exposure to hurricane winds. In addition to addressing technical requirements, “soft infrastructure” solutions provided even greater resiliency.

Materials that respond better to flooding were chosen: a water-repelling concrete masonry unit (CMU) stem wall below datum, and moisture and mold resistant closed-cell spray insulation. Instead of presenting a flat, linear face to the water, the building’s jagged edges can reduce the velocity of a storm surge, with landscaped berms creating higher ground to minimize scouring along the building’s edges.