Participants in the climate change workshop were invited to participate in a basic survey about the needs of local governments related to climate change. The participants were asked to write down their answers to one question: What do cities and counties need from state and federal agencies related to climate change?There were a total of 43 responses to the survey. Roughly half of the responses indicate a need for data and information on the potential effects of climate change on communities and resources. A full summary of the survey has been compiled, which included all survey responses. [.pdf]

Dr. George Taylor, Oregon Climate Service: Pacific Northwest Weather and Climate: Past, Present and Future  [powerpoint, 15m]
 
Michael Harte, Oregon State University, Oregon Sea Grant: Climate Change Impacts on Coastal Systems [powerpoint, 3m]
 
Dr. Jonathan Allan, Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries: Extreme Storms, El Ninos, and Sea Level Rise due to Earth's Changing Climate: The Changing Face of the Oregon Coast  [powerpoint, 18m]
 
Roger Hamilton, University of Oregon Climate Leadership Initiative: Climate Change Preparation Planning  [powerpoint, 2m]

Introduction
 

There are probably thousands of pages on the web related to climate change, now including this one. The links below are intended to provide an overview of web resources from reputable sources, in particular to provide some context for local government work on the Oregon Coast related to climate change.

 
 
International
 

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was established in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) to assess scientific, technical and socioeconomic information relevant to climate change, its potential impacts, and options for adaptation and mitigation. IPCC's website provides access to its reports, including its Third Assessment Synthesis Report published in 2001. The IPCC is currently finalizing its Fourth Assessment Report, "Climate Change 2007."

 
 
National
 

The US Climate Change Science Program integrates federal research on global climate change. In particular, this site provides access to a series of Synthesis and Assessment Products under five broad Climate Change Science Program goals.   The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Climate Program provides links to different climate-related NOAA functions, including Observations and Monitoring, Research and Modeling, and Climate Information; and the NOAA Climate Program Office.   The University of Maryland's Center for Integrative Environmental Research recently released a report on the economic effects of climate change. "The US Economic Impacts of Climate Change and the Costs of Inaction" says the economic costs of climate change in the United States will be major and nationwide in scope. However, economic costs largely remain uncounted, unplanned for, and generally absent from public discussions.

 
 
Pacific Northwest Region
 

The Western Climate Initiative is a collaboration begun in early 2007 between Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington to address challenges related to climate change at the regional level. Since then, British Columbia has joined the initiative, and other states and provinces participate as observers.
 
The University of Washington's Climate Impacts Group is a NOAA-sponsored interdisciplinary research group that covers the states of Washington, Idaho and Oregon. The website is excellent and well-organized, and links to the recently published Preparing for Climate Change: A Guidebook for Local, Regional, and State Governments.

 
Oregon
 

Oregon: Meeting the Challenge of Climate Change. The Oregon Department of Energy has created an excellent web portal to provide information on the many aspects of climate change that are likely to affect or concern Oregonians. In particular there is a section devoted to "Adapting and Preparing " that provides information on the Governor's Climate Change Integration Group (CCIG), which is due to produce a report on climate change at the end of 2007."Reducing Emissions" is Oregon's Strategy for Greenhouse Gas Reductions.
 
Other state agencies are increasing their attention to issues related to climate change. The Oregon Forest Resources Institute, assisted by the Oregon State University College of Forestry, completed a major synthesis of the science on forests and climate change called "Forests, Carbon and Climate Change." The Oregon Water Resources Department is just about to begin a long-term water supply planning effort, which will include investigating the potential effects of climate change on Oregon's water supplies. (Stay tuned to WRD's Oregon Water Supply and Conservation Initiative web site for details.) And the Department of Environmental Quality is working on two new initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
 
The University of Oregon's Institute for a Sustainable Environment has established a Climate Leadership Initiative (CLI) to increase public understanding of, and provide technical assistance on, the risks and opportunities associated with global warming. Finally, the Institute for Natural Resources at Oregon State University has completed several projects related to climate change.

 
OCMP Contacts
 

Bob Bailey, Oregon Coastal Management Program Manager
Laren Woolley, North Coast Field Services Representative
David Perry, South Coast Field Services Representative
Paul Klarin, Policy and Hazards Specialist
Steve Williams, Coastal Shorelands Specialist
Jeff Weber, Climate Change Project Coordinator