Climate Change in the EPA Mid-Atlantic Region

The impacts of climate change in the Mid-Atlantic Region have the potential to harm human health, disrupt livelihoods, and damage property, including the infrastructure and ecosystems that provide crucial services across the region. Recent news reports tell the tale:

• Destructive floods in West Virginia and Philadelphia.
• Tornados in suburban Maryland.
• Saltwater intrusion contaminating drinking water throughout Delmarva.
• Shifts in temperatures, rainfall, pests, and diseases affecting crop yields in Pennsylvania.
• Temperatures in our cities making summer days not just unbearable, but unsafe.
• Sea level rise eroding Delaware beaches, swallowing the Chesapeake’s historic inhabited islands, and undermining the Navy's ability to conduct and support operations in Virginia, the largest naval base in the world.

EPA has developed resources to provide the public with information to address the impacts of climate change. The resources cover everything from the basics of climate science to information and tools that support community efforts to implement climate adaptation and mitigation projects. For example, EPA’s Adaptation Resource Center (ARC-X) is an interactive resource to help local governments effectively deliver services to their communities even as the climate changes.

To further support climate resilience in the Mid-Atlantic Region, EPA Region 3 has developed a Climate Adaptation Implementation Plan that serves as Region 3’s response to former President Biden’s Executive Order 14008, “Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad," and former Administrator Regan’s direction in EPA’s 2021 National Climate Adaptation Action Plan. The plan incorporates climate adaptation into everything we do at EPA while at the same time working to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. Above all, our plan is intended to be outcome and action oriented. We will track progress on the actions described in this plan and work closely with our partners to increase climate resilience for all.

That is why EPA Region 3 will identify, engage with, and assist the populations and communities most at risk to the impacts of climate change. This year we are excited to host the first EPA Region 3 Climate Workshop, which will identify areas where we can work together to build climate resilience across the Mid-Atlantic Region and overcome information and resource barriers. We hope that this will serve as the first in a series of workshops and discussions with key partners throughout the region as we listen and learn across sectors and levels of government.