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Estuaries set to be climate ready |
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Written by Claudia Klein
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Monday, 23 June 2008 |
 The US Environmental Protection Agency has chosen six estuaries to be case studies for coastal ecosystem and economic protection from climate change.
This is the first step in the EPA's Climate Ready Estuaries effort to build local ability to adapt to climate change. It is one of more than 40 specific actions to respond to the water-related impacts of climate change by the National Water Program to help water resource managers adapt their programs to a changing climate.
Estuaries are where rivers meet the sea, and are expected to experience some of the most severe effects of climate change.
Benjamin Grumbles, EPA Assistant Administrator for Water said, "EPA's Climate Ready Estuaries work will help coastal communities understand and adapt to climate change. Our aim is to build capacity for local decision makers and resource managers to help take pro-active, practical steps for bays at risk."
The South East coast of the US is considered most vulnerable to climate change.
Charlotte Harbor Estuary, one of the six estuaries chosen may also suffer from sea levels rising.
"New Englanders are typically on the cutting-edge of environmental protection, so we are excited that EPA's Climate Ready Estuaries program will work with two local coastal areas to understand and learn how to adapt to climate change,” said Robert Varney, regional administrator for EPA’s New England office.
National level support includes information and technical assistance for all National Estuary Programs, NEPs, and other coastal managers, and targeted financial support to several NEP pilots. Funds will be used to find and show ways to identify vulnerabilities, develop adaptation strategies, and implement those strategies. When these adaptation strategies have been completed, the EPA will recognize individual National Estuary Programs and other coastal communities as "climate ready," urging the coastal leaders to implement climate adaptation and gain local and national, public and private partners to support their actions.
The other five pilots include New Hampshire Estuaries Project, Massachusetts Bays Estuary Program, Partnership for Delaware Bay, the Albemarle-Pamlico Sound National Estuary, and the San Francisco Estuary Project. THE END. |
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