EESI-CCAP Report: Preparing Transportation Infrastructure for Increased Climate Risk

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) and the Center for Clean Air Policy (CCAP) are pleased to announce the release of their joint report, Climate Adaptation & Transportation : Identifying Information and Assistance Needs (view the report's summary here ).

At a time when transportation agencies are faced with failing infrastructure and major budgetary constraints, the transportation sector is bearing significant losses from recent extreme weather events. With the National Climate Assessment assessing impacts and adaptation progress in key sectors of the U.S. economy – including transportation – it is timely to consider the needs of state and local transportation agencies as they start to adapt their practices to climate change and shifting trends in extreme weather.
 

The CCAP-EESI report presents the findings of a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)-funded workshop that brought together transportation and climate experts from all levels of government, academia and non-profits to identify critical information and technical assistance needs on climate change adaptation.
 

Key workshop findings include:

• Transportation officials need improved tools for integrating climate and weather information into asset management and economic development decisions.
• Adaptation starts with determining how well critical infrastructure is adapted to current climate and weather conditions .
• Information on local, non-climate factors – such as infrastructure elevation, state-of-repair, soil saturation and tide levels – is as important as climate science information.
• Innovative engineering practices are needed, such as developing trending standards to reflect recent extremes and climate change projections.
• Compelling images of impacts and common-sense solutions are critical.

Key recommendations for federal agencies include:

• Update flood maps taking climate change scenarios into account.
• Provide technical assistance to help transportation practitioners Ask the Climate Question when planning, siting, designing and constructing infrastructure.
• Enhance research on the economic, social and environmental costs and benefits of climate change preparedness measures.

Transportation practitioners need tools and methodologies for making decisions with imperfect data and perpetual uncertainty. The good news is that transportation experts already have much of the relevant experience needed to prepare for climate change impacts through their experience in hazard mitigation, emergency response, flood management, and land use planning. Thus, it is important for transportation practitioners to educate themselves on climate science and to articulate their unique data and technical assistance needs. Data will never be perfect, but common-sense planning, strategic improvements and capacity building can go a long way.

To download a copy of the report, click here .
A 4-page executive summary of the report is available here .
Workshop presentations are available for download by clicking here .

 

For more information, contact John-Michael Cross at eesi [at] eesi.org or (202) 662-1883.