The Thurston Regional Planning Council will use a $250,000 grant from the National Estuary Program Watershed Protection and Restoration Program to create a climate adaptation plan for the region. The multiyear planning project, which will begin this fall, will help answer critical questions, including:

• How could the Thurston Region prepare for possible changes to the magnitude or frequency of climate-related events such as drought, flooding, sea-level rise, or wildfire over the coming decades?
• How could we adapt to such changes, yet continue to thrive ecologically, socially, and economically?
• What are some of the projected costs of climate change risks in the region?

Studying how to adapt to a changing climate — also known as adaptation — is a key component of a creating regional climate action plan, one of the first steps recommended by Sustainable Thurston. The landmark sustainability plan also recommends a suite of mitigation actions — such as reducing vehicle miles traveled and building energy consumption — to help the region reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and achieve eventual “carbon neutrality.”

Learn more about the climate adaptation plan and its partners.

Learn more about Sustainable Thurston’s climate-related goals and actions.

Learn more about the U.S. EPA’s National Estuary Program Watershed Protection and Restoration Program grant, which is administered in Washington by the state Department of Ecology.