Climate Action in Delaware: 2016 Progress Report
The State of Delaware released Climate Action in Delaware: 2016 Progress Report highlighting the state’s progress toward mitigating and adapting to climate change, and outlining some ongoing projects and next steps for state agencies.
The 2015 Climate Framework for Delaware identifies strategies for Delaware to prepare for climate change - including 155 recommended actions to protect public health, infrastructure, the economy, and natural resources through adaptation, mitigation, and flood avoidance. The 2016 Progress Report provides an update on the actions and goals outlined in the Framework, and includes an overview of local government adaptation actions. The progress report also contains a comprehensive appendix detailing the progress of each of the Framework’s adaptation recommendations.
Since the publication of the Framework, adaptation progress has been made within state agencies to move from planning to implementation. According to the report, 7 adaptation actions have been completed, and 103 adaptation actions are in progress to date.
Some highlights of the adaptation progress in Delaware include:
A new grant program - the Strategic Opportunity Fund for Adaptation - was launched in 2016, funding the implementation of state agency climate adaptation activities related to their recommendations in the Climate Framework. In its first year, ten projects from six state agencies were awarded grants for a wide range of adaptation actions.
The Executive Order 41 Flood Avoidance Workgroup developed a set of tools and guidelines to help state agencies comply with the flooding directives of the order, found in the Avoiding and Minimizing Risk of Flood Damage to State Assets guide.
Delaware has initiated a pilot project with a new Climate-Ready Workforce - coordinating efforts of several state agencies with outdoor workers to identify best practices to support the health and safety of these at-risk workers.
In Bowers Beach, the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control is using state and federal grant funds to renovate a state-owned parking lot by converting two acres into public green space, adding shade trees and a vegetated buffer - in order to reduce tidal flooding, lessen heat impacts, and add an amenity for the local community.
The DE Division of Fish and Wildlife is creating an 86-acre wetland complex at the Ted Harvey Wildlife Area, with “climate-smart” coastal impoundments to provide critical habitat and allow freshwater species to migrate inland over time.
The Adaptation Appendix, a companion document to the Progress Report, provides a summary of progress for each climate adaptation recommendation developed by Delaware agencies for the Climate Framework. The Appendix presents progress in two separate sections (for ease of use): Recommendation Progress by Agency, and Recommendation Progress by Topic including: Public Health and Safety, Natural Resources, State Assets and Infrastructure, and Resilient Communities and Economies.
Publication Date: January 13, 2017
Related Organizations:
Sectors:
- Coastal
- Land management and conservation
- Land use and built environment
- Public health
- Water resources
Resource Category:
Resource Types:
- Progress report
States Affected:
