• Ecosystems Resources

Biodiversity and Ecosystems Assessments and Tools

This tab presents federal, state, and local climate science, tools, and assessments examining the impacts of climate change on biodiversity and ecosystems.  

Resources are automatically presented by rating, but can also be sorted by date and title. Apply additional filters to narrow the list by resource type, impact, region, state, or jurisdictional focus.

 

 

297 results are shown below.

Resource Type

 

 

Resource

Pennsylvania Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources and Climate Change - Planning for the Future

September 9, 2015

This white paper outlines the impacts of climate change on the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR)’s mission and lands, and provides adaptation strategies and a planning framework to address them.

Resource Category: Planning

 

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Performance of Natural Infrastructure and Nature-based Measures as Coastal Risk Reduction Features

September 2015

This report from the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) reviews the state of understanding of the coastal storm and sea level rise risk reduction capacity of various types of natural infrastructure. The summarized information was compiled from existing literature and participant input obtained during an expert workshop held in May 2015. 

Resource Category: Solutions

 

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Adaptation Workbook: A Climate Change Tool for Forest Management and Conservation

Created by the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science, this resource is used to create detailed land management adaptation plans customized to a user’s property. The structured process considers the potential effects of climate change on forest ecosystems and outlines conservation actions that can help prepare for changing conditions. The interactive and self-guided Workbook is compatible for a wide range of geographic locations, scales, forest types, management goals, and ownership types; it can be used by forest and natural resource managers as well as any landowner with knowledge about local ecosystems.

Resource Category: Planning

 

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Ecosystem-Service Assessment: Research Needs for Coastal Green Infrastructure

August 2015

The Coastal Green Infrastructure and Ecosystem Services Task Force of the National Science and Technology Council has recommended priority areas of research to support the integration of green infrastructure into coastal resilience planning. This report focuses on the ecosystem services provided by coastal green infrastructure (CGI) and recommends areas for prioritized Federal research to support the integration of CGI.

Resource Category: Assessments

 

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State of the Climate 2014

July 16, 2015

The "State of the Climate" is the authoritative annual summary of the global climate published as a supplement to the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. An international, peer-reviewed publication released each summer, it provides a detailed update on global climate indicators, notable weather events, and other data collected by environmental monitoring stations and instruments located on land, water, ice, and in space. The State of the Climate report is compiled by NOAA’s Center for Weather and Climate at the National Centers for Environmental Information and is based on contributions from 413 scientists from 58 countries around the world.

Resource Category: Assessments

 

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Smart Growth Self-Assessment for Rural Communities

July 2015

This self-assessment tool from the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency is a checklist of “smart growth” strategies for local governments and planners that can help inform the development of healthier and more resilient communities. This “yes”/“no” checklist is organized by eleven goal areas common to rural communities, each including examples of associated strategies from around the country with related resource links. The self-assessment allows rural communities to identify strengths and gaps in policies, plans, programs, codes, and zoning regulations which can help inform subsequent identification of high- and medium-priority strategies to address a community’s unique goals and needs.

Resource Category: Assessments

 

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Climate Hubs Tool Shed

July 2015

The Climate Hubs Tool Shed provides information on tools to support agricultural and forest land managers in adapting to climate change. The database includes tools that are directly relevant to climate variability and change, as well as tools that can assist in managing climate related impacts, such as drought, pests, and extreme weather. The Tool Shed is managed by the U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) - who describes the target audience as Climate Hub extension and consultants, as well as land managers, land owners, and researchers.

Resource Category: Data and tools

 

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Recommendations for assessing the effects of the DOI Hurricane Sandy Mitigation and Resilience Program on ecological system and infrastructure resilience in the Northeast coastal region

June 2015

This report presents metrics for assessing the resilience of natural and artificial coastal features most affected by Hurricane Sandy along the Northeast coast - such as beaches, dunes, wetlands, and grey and green infrastructure. The focal coastal ecological and infrastructure assets identified are Department of the Interior (DOI) funded projects as implemented through the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act. The report establishes a set of ecological performance metrics for detecting changes in resilience resulting from the project actions, and provides recommendations for completing an assessment of how DOI projects have affected the resilience of the Northeastern coast.

Resource Category: Assessments

 

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Cities Impacts and Adaptation Tool

From the University of Michigan Graham Sustainability Institute, the Cities Impacts and Adaptation Tool (CIAT) was a result of the Great Lakes Adaptation Assessment for Cities (G-LACC) project. This online climate adaptation planning support tool was designed to support decision makers at the municipal level in the Great Lakes Region. The goal was to create a tool that can be used by stakeholders to synthesize, communicate, and apply climate-relevant knowledge for urban resilience under different climate scenarios.

Resource Category: Data and tools

 

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Weather We Don't Recognize: How climate change is affecting the Midwest’s weather and how communities are responding

May 2015

Island Press and the National Wildlife Federation collaborated to produce this report which summarizes the major findings of the 2014 National Climate Assessment for the Midwest, and highlights how communities are responding to the impacts of climate change.

Author or Affiliated User: Sandra Tassel

Resource Category: Assessments

 

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