September 30, 2024
UW Climate Impacts Group contributes to new WA State Climate Resiliency Strategy
Members of the University of Washington Climate Impacts Group have supported a newly released plan for state agencies to address the regional impacts of climate change, such as dwindling snowpack, rising seas, flooding and dangerous heat events like the 2021 Pacific Northwest “heat dome.”
Washington State Climate Resilience Strategy report cover
To deal with those threats and prepare for the impacts still to come, 10 state agencies collaborated on the Washington State Climate Resilience Strategy. Using the latest science as a foundation, the state’s new climate strategy, released Sept. 30, identifies actions that agencies will take to address the top climate change threats facing Washington: drought, changing ocean conditions, flooding, extreme heat, and wildfires and smoke.
The strategy’s creation was directed by the Washington Legislature, bringing together the state departments of agriculture, commerce, ecology, fish and wildlife, health, natural resources, transportation, the Washington State Conservation Commission, the Emergency Management Division and the Puget Sound Partnership. The UW Climate Impacts Group grounded the work with the most up-to-date science and developed a framework to measure progress on climate resilience.
The Legislature has also directed the 10 agencies to update the plan every four years to incorporate the latest science, resources and concerns into the strategy.
“This plan gives our state a road map to respond to major climate impacts like wildfires, smoke, severe heat, drought and flooding,” said Jason Vogel, interim director of the UW Climate Impacts Group, which acts as a hub for climate information and adaptation strategy for Washington state agencies and communities. “By understanding what the state can do, what resources are available, and where they can have the greatest impact, we can limit the damage caused by these events, protecting lives, livelihoods and the environment that supports us all.”
In the plan, each of the responsible agencies will act as the lead for specific actions, based on their existing roles and expertise.
“Washington got lucky this summer. We had fewer major wildfires and more moderate drought,” said Laura Watson, director of the state Department of Ecology. “We know that was just a temporary reprieve. We’ve seen devastating proof in recent years of how vulnerable our state is. We are very susceptible to rising temperatures, summer wildfires, drought and winter floods. We have to prepare now so we’re ready for what’s to come.”
UW Climate Impacts Group contributors also included Guillaume Mauger, Washington’s State Climatologist, and Carlie Stowe, a climate resilience specialist. Crystal Raymond, who’s now deputy director at the Western Fire & Forest Resilience Collaborative, of which the UW is a member, contributed while based at the UW Climate Impacts Group.
Adapted from a Department of Ecology press release. For more information, contact Stowe at stowec@uw.edu.
A launch event will take place 11 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 10, at the UW. Space is limited but reporters are welcome to register here. At the launch, UW researchers who contributed to the 5th National Climate Assessment will also share the latest science and findings from the assessment’s Northwest chapter.
Tag(s): climate change • Climate Impacts Group • College of the Environment • EarthLab • Guillaume Mauger • Jason Vogel • population health
