California Case Studies
This tab includes case studies of adaptation efforts in California communities.
65 results are shown below.
Resource
January 9, 2017
Drought and Equity in California is the first statewide analysis of the impacts of the five-year and ongoing drought on California’s most vulnerable communities. Three major impacts of the drought are the focus of the report, including water supply shortages, drought charges and water affordability, and the drought impacts on salmon fisheries. The Pacific Institute finds that water shortages and price increases affected access to safe, affordable water for Californians, with the most severe impacts on several vulnerable populations.
Resource Category: Assessments
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January 19, 2017
The Georgetown Climate Center report, Lessons in Regional Resilience, documents lessons learned from regional climate collaboratives, which are bringing together local governments and other stakeholders to coordinate climate change initiatives at a regional level. This synthesis report shares lessons from each of the collaboratives in individual case studies, and offers insight to their goals, planning processes, and funding sources. The report is intended to help local governments consider models for coordinating at the regional level to facilitate planning and action to prepare for the impacts of climate change and draws on examples from six regional collaboratives from around the country.
Authors or Affiliated Users: Annie Bennett, Jessica Grannis
Resource Category: Law and Governance
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Resource
November 17, 2016
A Resilient Lands and Waters Initiative Final Report and companion website highlight the efforts of seven partnerships across the U. S. to build resilience of natural resources and to increase climate resilience at the landscape scale. These partnerships use existing collaborative, regional approaches to address climate change and to identify priority areas for conservation, restoration, and management actions. At each location, Federal agencies work closely with state, tribal, and local partners to prepare for and prevent climate impacts, and ensure that long-term conservation efforts take climate change into account.
Resource Category: Solutions
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November 16, 2016
Looking at 17 communities engaged in adaptation, this report examines what communities are doing to address climate risks. It finds that communities are often motivated by extreme climate event and are more focused on reducing their current vulnerabilities to extreme events, compared to addressing future climate impacts. Despite this, there is encouraging evidence that communities can begin addressing climate change risks and overcome barriers to action and implementation. The 17 case studies provide insights into the key components of a well-adapted community.
Authors or Affiliated Users: Jason M. Vogel, Karen Carney, Charles Herrick, Missy Stults, Megan O'Grady, Alexis St. Juliana, Heather Hosterman, Lorine Giangola, Joel B. Smith
Resource Category: Solutions
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October 11, 2016
In a 2016 book, Local Code – 3,659 Proposals About Data, Design and the Nature of Cities, the author, Nicholas de Monchaux, discusses how vacant lots can be a valuable resource for helping cities boost their climate resilience. Monchaux, an architecture professor at the University of California- Berkeley, analyzed vacant lots in four cities (New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Venice). He highlighted the potential to use vacant lots for projects to mitigate urban heat islands and manage stormwater; he also discusses the equity aspects of adaptively reusing vacant properties. He suggests that cities invest more in greening unused spaces in underserved communities as a way to achieve greater environmental and social impact. The book looks at potential transformation of different types of lands and public spaces including abandoned public streets, lots, rights-of-way, and alleyways.
Author or Affiliated User: Nicholas de Monchaux
Resource Category: Solutions
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Resource
September 2016
This report presents a high-level vulnerability assessment along with seven adaptation design concepts for Mission Creek and the Mission Bay neighborhood adjacent to the San Francisco Bay in San Francisco, California. This adaptation study seeks to inform sea level rise resilient redevelopment in Mission Bay - one of the largest redevelopment projects in the city of San Francisco. Though focused around Mission Creek, the process and design ideas detailed in this report can be replicated in other parts of the Bay Area.
Resource Category: Solutions
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FHWA supported the work of state Departments of Transportation (DOTs) and Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) to develop and pilot approaches for assessing the vulnerability of transportation systems to climate change and develop strategies for building resilience in the transportation sector. Nineteen pilot projects were selected and the pilot jurisdictions worked with FHWA's Climate Change and Extreme Weather Vulnerability Assessment Framework. This FHWA website includes the individual pilot studies for the pilot projects funded in 2013-2015 and webinars of the pilot teams discussing their work and their findings.
Resource Category: Solutions
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2015
Here. Now. Us. was a project launched in 2015 by the County of Marin, California, Climate Access, and the company Owlized to engage community members of the county to better understand local climate impacts, and begin to formulate solutions. To help visualize local sea level rise, OWL viewfinders were installed along a popular coastal multi-use pathway in Mill Valley, Marin County. These viewfinders are modeled after the classic coin-operated binoculars found at scenic viewpoints, but upgraded with 3D visualizations of how these places can be affected by sea level rise.
Resource Category: Education and Outreach
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Resource
2015
California’s SOMAH and MASH programs provide an example of how financial incentives can be used to support installation of solar energy photovoltaic (PV) systems on multifamily affordable housing properties. Assembly Bill 693 provides financial incentives for the installation of PV systems, prescribes criteria for participation in the incentive program, sets targets for installation of solar PV systems, identifies various required elements for the Program, and gives direction to the California Public Utilities Commission on the administration of the Program. The SOMAH program's goal is to encourage the installation of 300 megawatts (MW) of solar power to benefit affordable housing units by 2030. This program is funded through GHG allowance auction proceeds and is administered by nonprofits and electric utilities. Eligible building owners and tenants can receive solar credits through a virtual net energy metering system. The program provides direct economic benefits by allowing low-income renters to receive energy produced on the roof of their housing unit, which lowers monthly utility costs and helps “disadvantaged communities” reap the benefits of the growing California solar industry.
Resource Category: Funding
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November 19, 2014
The Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Authority (CCJPA) conducted a sea-level rise vulnerability assessment for the corridor’s rail assets and is incorporating those findings into the agency’s Vision Plan, identifying sea-level rise as a critical issue in long-term planning and investments. The Capitol Corridor, which is managed but not owned by the CCJPA, serves as the primary public transportation connection between the Sacramento metropolitan area and the San Francisco Bay Area. Large stretches of the corridor run along waterfronts and through marshlands and other areas that will be increasingly vulnerable to inundation and flooding during storm events as sea levels rise.
Resource Category: Planning
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