WA State Climate Impacts Assessment (HB 1303)

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WA State Climate Impacts Assessment (HB 1303)

• CIG Fall Forecasting Meeting
• October 2, 2007
• Marketa McGuire Elsner

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Outline

• Background of HB 1303
• WA State Climate Impacts Assessment (Integrated
  Assessment)
• Sector Objectives
• Products
• HB 1303 in the Context of the Governors Climate
  Change Initiative

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HB 1303 Background

• Passed in Spring 2007
• Supports emissions reduction and use of
  alternative fuels via changes in the Revised Code
  of Washington (RCW) and various funding programs
• Calls for CTED and Ecology work with Climate
  Impacts Group to evaluate impacts of climate
  change on Washington State
• Develop comprehensive assessment that includes
  impacts of global warming on public health,
  agriculture, the coastline, forestry,
  infrastructure, and water supply and management

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Conceptual Approach to Assessment

• Integrated assessment of regional climate
  impacts
• The study of how climate, natural resources, and
  human socioeconomic systems affect each other

Source Snover et al. (2002). Integrating Natural
and Social Science for Regional Assessment of
Climate Impacts on the Pacific Northwest.
Mississippi River Climate and Hydrology
Conference. Louisiana, May 2002.
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Source Snover et al. (2002). Integrating Natural
and Social Science for Regional Assessment of
Climate Impacts on the Pacific Northwest.
Mississippi River Climate and Hydrology
Conference. Louisiana, May 2002.
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State Climate Impacts Assessment Sector
Objectives

• Climate Scenarios
• Hydrology and Water Resources
• Agriculture -New
• Salmon
• Forests
• Coasts
• Human Health -New
• Infrastructure -New
• Adaptation

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Products of HB 1303

• A report describing how climate change is
  projected to affect the people and resources of
  Washington state over the next 100 years, with
  focus on the next 50
• Will be based on the 2007 global climate change
  scenarios released by the Intergovernmental Panel
  on Climate Change
• Will indicate how impacts vary by region across
  the state and indicate locations of high and low
  sensitivity to climate change
• Will characterize barriers to adaptation to these
  impacts (e.g., legal, institutional) and
  prioritize areas for future action.

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Products of HB 1303

• A web portal providing free access to data and
  maps indicating projected changes in
• Temperature
• Precipitation
• Sea level rise
• Snowpack
• Streamflow
• Agricultural productivity
• Public health risk
• Salmon risk
• Forest risk
• Coastal vulnerability

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Related Studies
HB 1303 State Climate Impacts Assessment
Governors EO Washington State Climate Change
Challenge (PAWGs)

• Evaluation of impacts to 2100
• Focus on the next 50 years
• Indicate how impacts vary by region across the
  state
• Indicate locations of high and low sensitivity to
  climate change
• Characterize barriers to adaptation to these
  impacts (e.g., legal, institutional) and
  prioritize areas for future action

• Examination of the impacts of climate change and
  recommendations of specific steps the State of
  Washington should take to prepare for its
  impacts.
• Charge
• Identify vulnerabilities
• Identify potential adaptation approaches
• Prioritize near-term approaches
• Identify research needs

Interim Results and Progress Report Dec 2007
Final Report Dec 2008
Preliminary Recommendations Dec 2007
Final Report Feb 2008
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Thank you