Project #5054

Using Climate Information in Water Utility Planning

$25,000
Completed
Principal Investigator
Guillaume
Mauger
Research Manager
Ms. Maureen Hodgins
Contractor
University of Washington
Climate Change

Abstract

This project convened a workshop for water utilities in the northwest United States designed to improve the delivery of resources for small- to medium-size water utilities to help them build their resilience to climate change. Through a survey, focus groups, and a workshop, an understanding of utility climate planning needs and strategies to support them was developed, and resources for climate resilience planning were provided. Project results, including presentations featuring utility experiences in climate adaptation, can be found below under Resources. Three webinars are included: Webinar 1, Learning How to Adapt to a Changing Climate: A Collection of Case Studies from Water Agencies Throughout the U.S.; Webinar 2, Climate Adaptation, and The Climate Toolbox; and Webinar 3, Throw Away Your Crystal Ball: A Stress Testing Approach to Infrastructure Planning Under Climate Change Uncertainty, and Tools Presentation. This project was part of a series of regional workshops that were funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and various partners. This effort also resulted in the webinar series, Our Changing Precipitation: A Conversation on the Science of Precipitation and Planning for the Future, hosted by NOAA and WRF. Summaries of the workshops, along with webinar recordings, can be accessed at via NOAA's website. A written summary of the webinar series is also available.