Case Studies | U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit

Communities, businesses, and individuals are taking action to document their vulnerabilities and build resilience to climate-related impacts. Click dots on the map to preview case studies, or browse stories below the map. Use the drop-down menus above to find stories of interest. To expand your results, click the Clear Filters link.

Photo of pararescueman Staff Sgt. Lopaka Mounts receiving a hug from a resident after Hurricane Ike, Sept. 13, 2008.

A Climate for Resilience

The City of Houston faces an array of climate vulnerabilities: flooding, drought, tropical cyclones, and extreme heat can all affect the city's population and industries. Government and non-profit agencies in the region combined their resources in a pilot project to plan for climate resilience.

Wooden boardwalk leading to a beach with trees on either side and mountains in the distance.

A Community Effort Stems Runoff to Safeguard Corals in Puerto Rico

In Culebra, Puerto Rico, the community used green infrastructure to decrease coastal erosion and mitigate damage to their near-shore coral reef.

A Community Works Together to Reduce Damages from Flooding

The Village of Walton, New York worked with their Soil and Water Conservation District to engage community members in decisions about flooding in their community. The Village eventually took action to restore portions of the floodplain to reduce flooding.

The dock at China Champ, San Rafael, California

A Road-Flooding Fix for a California State Park

Flooding from rain and extreme high tides often leaves the road to San Francisco's China Camp State Park inaccessible. So a diverse group of stakeholders, with support from NOAA’s Science Collaborative team, proposed raising the road.

Dam and spillway on the St. Francis River

Addressing Short- and Long-Term Risks to Water Supply

In 2012, water managers in Fredericktown, Missouri, saw their city's main source of water dwindle. They used the EPA’s Creating Resilient Water Utilities program to consider options and develop plans to protect their water source.

Addressing Water Supply Risks from Flooding and Drought

Water managers in Keene, New Hampshire, assessed the vulnerability of their water assets to enhance their resilience to the impacts of a changing climate.

All Hands on Deck: Creating Green Infrastructure to Combat Flooding in Toledo

Staff at the City of Toledo partnered with government agencies, local businesses, and non-profit organizations to consider and begin implementing green infrastructure projects to deal with flooding. Their work also inspired a guide advising other communities how they could do the same.

An Inland City Prepares for a Changing Climate

When Blacksburg's new Sustainability Manager realized that climate change is more than just sea level rise, she lead her inland city toward climate resilience by developing a climate vulnerability assessment.

Panorama of downtown Asheville, North Carolina

Asheville Makes a Plan for Climate Resilience

This western North Carolina city is using the Steps to Resilience to proactively plan for expected climate change impacts.

Assessing a Tropical Estuary's Climate Change Risks

Puerto Rico's San Juan Bay Estuary faces multiple threats, including heavy use by urban populations and impacts of climate change. A workbook from the EPA's Climate Ready Estuaries program helped them catalog, prioritize, and address their climate risks.

Assessing the Timing and Extent of Coastal Change in Western Alaska

An interactive map based on four decades of satellite images helps residents, resource managers, and stewards of the land anticipate and plan for coastal change.

Aerial view of the Blue Lake Rancheria 500kW solar PV array within the Tribe’s community microgrid

Blue Lake Rancheria Tribe Undertakes Innovative Action to Reduce the Causes of Climate Change

Named a Climate Action Champion, this California tribal community is building community resilience as it undertakes mitigation action.

Small community on the edge of a coastal wetland landscape.

Boosting Community Storm Resilience in Alaska

Many remote coastal communities in Alaska currently have no formal storm history data, flood risk analysis, or way to predict and assess flooding impacts to their communities. These communities are at risk of flooding due to climate change and other coastal hazards such as storms.

Planning drawing for College Avenue in Fort Colllins, CO

Building Smart in the Floodplain

The city of Fort Collins, Colorado, found a win-win solution to problems it faced with 100 acres of abandoned property. The city now enjoys new green space, improved floodwater management, and a boosted economy.

Skyline of Las Cruces, NM and the Organ Mountains

Catalyzing Investment and Building Capacity in Las Cruces

Planning with extreme weather thresholds catalyzes a $400,000 green infrastructure investment in a historically underserved neighborhood in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

The Coleman Theater in downtown Miami, OK

Eighth Graders and Emergency Preparedness in Oklahoma

Educating local middle-schoolers about emergency preparedness allows the small city of Miami to build climate resilience in an accessible way—and broach the topic of climate change.

Recreational boats on quiet water with seaside homes in background.

Exploring Adaptation Options for Water Infrastructure at Sea Level

In Massachusetts, Manchester-by-the-Sea's wastewater treatment plant is located right on the coast. The town's water utility is working with the EPA's Creating Resilient Water Utilities program to consider its adaptation options.

Mill River Culvert, Old Croton Aqueduct, Tarrytown, New York

Extreme Rainfall Analyses Can Point to Right Size for Culverts

Across most of the United States, the heaviest rainfall events have become heavier and more frequent. New tools can help decision makers choose culverts with appropriate capacities for the future.

Greening Boston: The Climate Change Preparedness and Resiliency Checklist

To build the city's resilience, Boston requires that new buildings and renovation projects follow best practices for climate change adaptation.

How Vulnerable Are Salmon to a Changing Climate?

Researchers in Washington's South Fork Nooksack River are seeking to better understand the potential impacts of climate change on water quality and salmon recovery—a process they hope can be replicated and scaled in other watersheds across the country.

The Meramec River running past Onondaga Cave State Park in Missouri.

Identifying High-Priority Conservation Lands to Enhance Flood Mitigation

Community groups are working to establish a connected ring of conservation land around St. Louis, Missouri. They're using an innovative strategy to help them target land that can also enhance their flood mitigation efforts.

Improving Water Quality by Dealing with the First Inch of Rain

The suburban city of Mount Rainier, Maryland, is doing its part to improve the water quality of a polluted river in its region: residents and organizations are using green infrastructure to reduce stormwater runoff.

Increasing Transportation Resilience in the Gulf Coast

A federal study assessed vulnerabilities of transportation infrastructure to extreme events in Mobile, Alabama. The effort also resulted in tools and approaches that other transportation departments can use to assess and address their own vulnerabilities.

Innovative Green Infrastructure Project Has Diverse Funding And Financing Portfolio

Once a defunct golf course, Exploration Green is now a 200-acre urban green space providing the community with an innovative solution for their stormwater flooding and recreational needs.

Bridge over the Huron River, Bandemer Park, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Integrating Education and Stormwater Management for Healthy Rivers and Residents

The City of Ann Arbor recognized stormwater runoff as a growing threat to the quality of their water supply. They're addressing the issue with two complementary strategies.

Colorado National Guardsmen respond to floods in Boulder County, Colorado, on September 12, 2013

It Was a Dark and Stormy Night: Extreme Weather Leads to Collaboration in Boulder

The city charts its path to resilience by focusing on extreme weather and interdepartmental collaboration.

Keeping Toxins From Harmful Algal Blooms out of the Food Supply

Dense populations of some microscopic algae (phytoplankton) in ocean waters can contaminate seafood, resulting in serious health problems for humans. Satellite data displayed in an online tool help fishermen monitor and avoid these harmful algal blooms.

Luck Is Not a Policy We Can Count On: Boston Takes a Proactive Approach to Climate Adaptation

After witnessing what happened in New York City during Hurricane Sandy, Boston city leaders were determined to get ahead of their potential problems. To do so, they convened a diverse coalition of residents and worked to craft a comprehensive plan to adapt to climate change.

Mandeville, Louisiana: A City that Stays Afloat by Promoting Elevations

The City of Mandeville, located in St. Tammany Parish, decided to commit to helping residents escape troublesome flood waters. Finally tiring of the constant issue of a repeated damage-repair cycle, city officials decided to act by adopting high regulatory standards for the elevation of homes and businesses.

Motivating the Agricultural Community to Build Climate Resilience

Climate change adaptation isn’t always welcome as a topic of conversation, even among those who could benefit from it. A recent study hints at a possible path forward.

A type one heavy air tanker takes off from air command to fight the Hayman fire southwest of Denver.

Partnerships Promote Healthy Forests and Clean Water

Two major fires and subsequent flooding events wreaked havoc on a critical watershed and reservoir that supplies Denver with water. Now, a public-private partnership is working to ensure a clean, reliable water supply.

Pittsburgh Unifies its Approach to Updating Stormwater Management

When city planners realized the majority of their water quality and flooding issues were all symptoms of ineffective stormwater management, they eliminated departmental silos and adopted an integrated plan closely tied to how the city grows.

Planning for the Future in a Floodplain

After a nightmare flood in 1997, Fort Collins, Colorado, stepped up efforts to improve resilience in the face of extreme events—efforts that will also serve the community well if climate change leads to heavier rainstorms.

Planning for the Win! Using a Role Play Simulation to Plan for Climate Adaptation

Following a role play simulation on community planning for climate adaptation in Georgetown County, South Carolina, participants reported increased empathy for differing viewpoints and a high level of support for stakeholder engagement in planning processes.

Preparing for La Niña

O'ahu's busy construction industry depends on being able to dispose of demolition and construction wastes. Forecasts for a developing La Niña—often accompanied by heavy rains in Hawai'i—alerted managers at the island's main construction landfill to their climate vulnerability.

Quinault Village of Taholah on the Pacific Coast, October 2009

Quinault Indian Nation Plans for Village Relocation

As the threats of tsunami and sea level rise are joined by real and potential climate impacts, the Quinault community looks to move the lower village of Taholah to higher ground.

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