MIAMI BEACH, Fla. (AP) — The millions of dollars invested by communities like Miami Beach in climate change adaptation need the backup of long-term national policies like the president’s plan to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from power plants, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency said Thursday.

Administrator Gina McCarthy joined Democratic U.S. Sens. Bill Nelson and Sheldon Whitehouse in a bayfront neighborhood that in recent years frequently was flooded by seasonal high tides, with water rising up through aging infrastructure to swamp streets and businesses even if it wasn’t raining.