Category: Climate Change

Blue Carbon Resources

Jenny L Davis et al., Living Shorelines: Coastal Resilience with a Blue Carbon Benefit, 10 PloS one (2015) Environmental Justice Foundation, Our blue beating heart: blue carbon solutions in the fight against the climate crisis.  2021

Sea Level Rise Affects on Marshes

Sea Level Rise Affecting Marshes Model John D Boon, John M Brubaker & David R Forrest, Chesapeake Bay land subsidence and sea level change, App. Mar. Sci. and Ocean Eng., Report 1–73 (2010).

State and Local Government Liability for Flooding

Jon Kusler, Government Liability and Climate Change: Selected Legal Issues Related to Flood Hazards (2016). Jon Kusler, Flood Risk In The Courts: Reducing Government Liability While Encouraging Government Responsibility (2011). Jon A Kusler, A Comparative Look at Public Liability for…

Coastal Restoration of San Francisco Bay

The Baylands and Climate Change: What we can do. Baylands Ecosystem Habitat Goals Science Update 2015 – Coastal Restoration of San Francisco Bay Original Site: THE BAYLANDS ECOSYSTEM HABITAT GOALS PROJECT This is a well thought through plan that recognizes that…

The Digital Coast

The Digital Coast What is the Digital Coast? This NOAA-sponsored website is focused on helping communities address coastal issues and has become one of the most-used resources in the coastal management community. The dynamic Digital Coast Partnership, whose members represent…

Are the Syrians the first official climate change refugees?

When we talk about future climate change refugees, the picture that comes to mind is starving people looking to leave a drought stricken country whose economic system has failed. Tragic, but within the international law system, these would be economic…

Progress Report: Subsidence in the Central Valley, California

Progress Report: Subsidence in the Central Valley, California Tom G Farr, Cathleen Jones, Zhen Liu Jet Propulsion Laboratory California Institute of Technology Executive summary Subsidence caused by groundwater pumping in the Central Valley has been a problem for decades. Over…

Engineering Standards for Levees and Floodwalls

Chapter 25. Levee Floodwalls, in Best Practices in Dam and Levee Safety Risk Analysis, US Army Corps of Engineers, 6 September 2012 (slides). Chapter 25. Levee Floodwalls, in Best Practices in Dam and Levee Safety Risk Analysis, US Army Corps…

State of the Climate 2014

Blunden, J. and D. S. Arndt, Eds., 2015: State of the Climate in 2014. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 96 (7), S1– S267. International report confirms: 2014 was Earth’s warmest year on record Climate markers continue to show global warming trend…

Discretionary authority defense applies to admiralty cases – MRGO admiralty claims dismissed

In re Katrina Canal Breaches Litig., No. 14-30060, 2015 WL 3407410 (5th Cir. May 28, 2015) – 5th Circuit reviews standard for discretionary authority defense and finds that applies to cases brought against the Federal government under the admiralty laws.…

Assessing and Improving Flood Insurance Management and Accountability in the Wake of Superstorm Sandy

U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Majority Staff Report Assessing and Improving Flood Insurance Management and Accountability in the Wake of Superstorm Sandy (2015) Despite widespread concerns, it does not appear that systematic incentives exist for any…

Tying Flood Insurance to Flood Risk for Low-Lying Structures in the Floodplains

Tying Flood Insurance to Flood Risk for Low-Lying Structures in the Floodplains  Authors Committee on Risk-Based Methods for Insurance Premiums of Negatively Elevated Structures in the National Flood Insurance Program; Water Science and Technology Board; Division on Earth and Life…

Western Water – Resources

Colorado River Basin Water Supply and Demand Study – WWW site Colorado River Basin Water Supply and Demand Study – Executive Summary (2012) Report predicting that the demand on the river will exceed capacity by 100% by 2050. Chasing Water…

US Cap and Trade Resources

Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) is the first market-based regulatory program in the United States to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. RGGI is a cooperative effort among the states of Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts,…

President Obama’s Climate Action Plan

Read President Obama’s Climate Action Plan in its entirety and fact sheet. PROGRESS REPORT: Highlighting Federal Actions Addressing the Recommendations of the State, Local, and Tribal Leaders Task Force on Climate Preparedness and Resilience, JULY 2015 View the Infographic In June…

Wetland Restoration and Community-Based Development Bayou Bienvenue, Lower Ninth Ward, New Orleans

Wetland Restoration and Community-Based Development Bayou Bienvenue, Lower Ninth Ward, New Orleans. Water Resources Management Practicum 2007 Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies University of Wisconsin–Madison August 2008. Follow-up study: Wetland Restoration and Community-Based Development Bayou Bienvenue, Lower Ninth Ward, New Orleans.…

Ocean Acidification

Educational Materials Ocean Acidification – Basic Chemistry – NOAA Ocean Acidification – More Detailed Chemistry – Nature Education Ocean Acidification – Impact of Sea Life – Smithsonian Resources Interagency Working Group on Ocean Acidification Ocean Acidification Site – NOAA

Legal resources for coastal erosion and marsh destruction claims

Also see: Louisiana Levee Board Coastal Erosion Law Suit; Louisiana Parish Lawsuits Against the Oil Industry for Wetlands Destruction Law Professor’s Brief on Louisiana Public Trust Doctrine Terrebonne Parish Sch. Bd. v. Castex Energy, Inc., 893 So. 2d 789 (La 2005) “We…

Topographic Map Showing Louisiana Risks from Sea Level Rise

State of Louisiana—Highlighting Low-Lying Areas Derived from USGS Digital Elevation Data (large file) In support of U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) disaster preparedness efforts, this map depicts a color shaded relief representation highlighting the State of Louisiana and depicts the surrounding areas…

Executive Order: Taking Action to Protect Communities and Reduce the Cost of Future Flood Disasters

Original Fact Sheet: Taking Action to Protect Communities and Reduce the Cost of Future Flood Disasters Executive Order – Establishing A Federal Flood Risk Management Standard And A Process For Further Soliciting And Considering Stakeholder Input FEMA Flood Risk Management Site…