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In coastal regions characterized by high flood risk, people and assets are commonly protected from flooding by dikes, dams and sea walls; so-called grey flood protection. These engineered structures are increasingly challenged by changes in local and regional climate conditions, such as sea level rise, land subsidence and increased storm exposure, and may become unsustainable 1 . Hard engineering structures are static and do not adapt to a changing environment 2 . Therefore, so-called green–grey flood protection—which combines traditional grey-protection with green-ecosystems—is increasingly considered a more sustainable strategy for keeping coastal regions safe from storm events with extreme waves 3 .

Green–grey flood protection uses the natural capacity of ecosystems to buffer extreme wave events and consequently reduce flood risk.…