Climate Ready Estuaries Program
Available Assistance: Technical, Outreach and Education
Statute: Clean Water Act
Program Type: Voluntary
EPA Contact(s):
- Michael Craghan | Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watersheds | 202-566-1946 | craghan.michael@epa.gov
Main Website(s): Climate Ready Estuaries
Working with the National Estuary Programs and the coastal management community to assess climate change vulnerabilities, develop and implement adaptation strategies, and engage and educate stakeholders.
On this page:
- About the Program
- Types of Assistance
- How This Program Helps Build Resilience
- Connections to Other EPA, Federal, or Non-Governmental Efforts
About the Program
The Climate Ready Estuaries (CRE) program works with the National Estuary Programs (NEPs) and the coastal management community to:
- Assess climate change vulnerabilities.
- Develop and implement adaptation strategies.
- Engage and educate stakeholders.
Types of Assistance
CRE shares examples of projects from the NEPs to help other coastal managers and provides technical guidance and assistance for climate change adaptation activities.
Technical Assistance
- CRE develops technical publications to guide risk-based climate change vulnerability assessments and adaptation action plans.
- The CRE website features a curated list of adaptation resources concentrating on coastal areas and watersheds for practitioners and environmental professionals.
- CRE works with the NEPs and other coastal areas to perform joint projects that advance climate adaptation initiatives. A full list of funded demonstration projects (2008–2018) is available.
Outreach and Education Assistance
- CRE has developed several online training webinars featuring the work of local partners.
How This Program Helps Build Resilience
CRE works to build capacity in coastal communities to adapt to the effects of the changing climate, including sea level rise, increased risk of storm events, and warming waters by:
- Delivering actionable information and technical assistance to help coastal managers assess climate change vulnerabilities and implement adaptation strategies.
- Providing how-to resources for developing risk-based planning documents and recommended sources to learn more about climate change stressors.
- Sharing a collection of available options that communities can take for responding to climate change risks.
CRE can help other water management focused stakeholders with challenges, including:
- Integrating environmental protection into local community planning and development activities.
- Building environmental stewardship for urban waters and watersheds.
Important CRE partners include NEPs such as the Long Island Sound Study (LISS) and the Puget Sound Partnership (PSP).
- The LISS is pursuing solutions to coastal challenges by supporting New York and Connecticut coastal communities in developing and adopting resilience plans. LISS is also seeking to engage underserved communities in creating sustainability plans that respond to communities’ needs and perspectives.
- The PSP is working with its partners in Washington State to apply the Coastal Storm Modelling System (CoSMoS) for detailed predictions of coastal flooding due to future sea level rise, storms, and river flooding driven by climate change.
Connections to Other EPA, Federal, or Non-Governmental Efforts
CRE also has strong connections to the Creating Resilient Water Utilities Initiative, the Urban Waters Federal Partnership program, and other EPA programs.