April 2016 

www.epa.gov/smartgrowth 

PLANNING FRAMEWORK FOR A

CLIMATE-RESILIENT ECONOMY 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

Project Planning Team 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 

Megan Susman Rosemary Monahan

Office of Sustainable Communities EPA Region 1 

1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW (MC 1807T) 5 Post Office Square 

Washington, DC 20460 Boston, MA 02109-3912 

susman.megan@epa.gov monahan.rosemary@epa.gov

State of Rhode Island 

Caitlin Greeley, Principal Planner 

Statewide Planning Program 

One Capitol Hill 

Providence, RI 02908 

Caitlin.Greeley@doa.ri.gov

Consultant Team 

Trevor Clements (Project lead)

Tetra Tech 

1 Park Drive Suite 200 

Research Triangle Park, NC 27709 

trevor.clements@tetratech.com

Hope Herron, Tetra Tech 

John Mizerak, Tetra Tech 

Bill Bohn, Tetra Tech 

Mason McClellan, Tetra Tech 

Kimberly Brewer, Tetra Tech 

Heather Fisher, Tetra Tech 

All photos courtesy of EPA unless otherwise noted. 

Cover images: Left, flooding in North Kingstown, courtesy of Melissa 

Devine for URI Coastal Resources Center. Top right, Rain garden. Bottom 

right, solar panel installation, courtesy of U.S. Department of Energy.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

Acknowledgments 

The following people provided helpful suggestions and comments on this document at various 

stages: 

EPA: Trish Garrigan and Roy Crystal, Region 1; Ken Munis, Office of Policy; Michael 

Schmeltz, Office of Research and Development; John Thomas, Office of Sustainable 

Communities 

State of Rhode Island: Elizabeth Stone, Department of Emergency Management; Laura 

Sullivan, Office of Housing and Community Development; Mike Walker, Rhode Island 

Commerce Corporation; Amanda Martin (formerly with Rhode Island Statewide Planning) 

Rhode Island Sea Grant: Teresa Crean and Pam Rubinoff 

Economic Development Administration: David Ives 

Federal Emergency Management Agency: Bruce Brodoff, Marilyn Hilliard, and Melissa 

Surette, Region 1 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: Heidi Stiller 

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development: Lynsey Johnson; Suzanne Piacentini, 

Connecticut Field Office 

U.S. Department of Transportation: Nick Garcia, Federal Transit Administration 

City of Boston, Massachusetts: Mia Goldwasser 

The Town of North Kingstown municipal staff and stakeholders were instrumental in shaping, 

piloting, and refining this framework, including: 

Shaun Lacey, Nicole LaFontaine, and Maura Harrington, Planning Department 

Jon Reiner and Paige Bronk, formerly with the town 

Conservation Commission 

Planning Board 

Economic Development Advisory Board 

Wickford Economic Development Advisory Board 

Quonset Development Corporation
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

i 

Executive Summary 

Projected greenhouse gas emissions over the coming decades are likely to contribute to shifts in 

precipitation patterns, higher temperatures, rising sea levels, and more frequent extreme weather 

events. These changes will likely add to the economic challenges that many communities already 

face. Having a climate-resilient economy—one that can withstand or recover quickly from 

climate impacts in the short and long terms—is essential to a community’s well-being. 

Starting to plan now with climate and economic resilience in mind will help the community and 

its businesses protect themselves against short-term shocks such as storms, reduce the need (and 

cost) to recover from a shock, incorporate economic resilience into other planning efforts, and 

get a jump-start on pursuing new opportunities that might arise as the climate changes. Local 

governments have many planning requirements, and some communities might hesitate to take on 

another planning effort. Planning for a climate-resilient economy, however, can fit with and 

enhance many other planning efforts, including comprehensive economic development, capital 

improvement, transportation improvement, master stormwater, and other plans that will affect 

business vitality for decades to come. 

Many community, business, and government leaders recognize the problem and are calling for 

action to prepare for and adapt to the potential effects of a changing climate. However, even with 

tools to estimate a community’s vulnerability to specific climate-related threats, it can be 

difficult to translate these threats into an economic bottom line and identify ways to become 

more resilient and take advantage of new opportunities.

To address this gap, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency worked with the Rhode Island 

Division of Planning to develop a framework to help communities assess their economic 

vulnerability to climate change and improve their economic resilience. A pilot community, North 

Kingstown, Rhode Island, tested and refined the framework. The framework can be adapted by 

communities anywhere in the country for their context and can be modified to cover small or 

large geographic areas and their economies. Communities’ existing plans can inform this 

framework, since issues such as vulnerability to floods will have been addressed in the local 

hazard mitigation plan and perhaps the comprehensive plan. Conversely, the results of this 

framework analysis can be folded into updates of other plans, such as incorporating flood 

resilience projects into capital improvement plans and encouraging new development in safer 

areas in the comprehensive plan. 

The framework can help communities ask the right questions to recognize their economic 

vulnerabilities and identify ways to be more climate resilient, with a focus on helping the 

business community prepare for and adapt to projected changes and think creatively about ways 

to prosper in a changing climate. It is designed to be flexible so communities with varying levels 

of analytical expertise, time, and funds can use it. Some communities can use it to get a “big 

picture” assessment of their vulnerabilities. Others could use more sophisticated tools such as 

GIS and other computer-based models and a team of experts to map out specific economic 

impacts or threats and business opportunities. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

ii

The framework consists of five basic steps, shown in Figure ES-1. 

Figure ES-1: Steps in the framework to plan for a climate-resilient economy. 

In step 1, the user determines who will be on the assessment team, the geographic area and 

economic activities the team will examine, and the objectives for the assessment. Engaging the 

right partners is critical, particularly in the private sector, as economic resilience will depend in 

large part on what individual business and property owners do. 

In step 2, the team evaluates which climate change impacts could affect the community and 

where might they occur. The framework’s flexibility allows the assessment team to opt for a 

basic, moderate, or more advanced approach. A basic approach could use regional climate 

change scenarios to get a general sense of what impacts are likely to occur in the community. A 

more advanced approach could include working with climate change specialists and assessment 

tools such as GIS and hazard impact models. Either way, the goal is to determine what portion(s) 

of the community’s geographic area are projected to be affected by climate-related hazards (e.g., 

flooding, drought, extreme heat). 

Step 1: Organize

1.1 Establish the assessment team

1.2 Define the community of interest

1.3 Set objectives for the assessment

Step 2: Evaluate Projected Climate Change Impacts and Hazards

2.1 Select climate change scenarios

2.2 Assess hazards

2.3 Select a method for spatial analysis

Step 3: Identify Community Assets and Their Vulnerability

3.1 Develop an assessment methodology

3.2 Identify community assets at risk

3.3 Define and apply a local vulnerability scale

3.4 Assess potential positive and negative impacts on economic activity

Step 4: Analyze Overall Economic Implications for the Community

Step 5: Explore Options to Enhance Resilience and Pursue Opportunities

5.1 Raise public awareness and garner support

5.2 Identify actions to enhance economic resilience and pursue opportunities
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

iii

In step 3, the team identifies critical local economic assets that might be at risk and how 

vulnerable they are to climate hazards. A sample table shows how the team could organize the 

information to make the risks and opportunities easier to identify. After identifying the assets, the 

team determines each asset’s vulnerability by looking at the asset’s exposure to the threat, the 

effect on operations, and the ability to adapt or protect itself. The team also summarizes potential 

positive and negative impacts on the economy if the asset is affected by a climate hazard. 

In step 4, the assessment team uses the information in the table to analyze the overall economic 

implications for the community. In this step, the team develops a comprehensive picture of local 

economic risks and opportunities associated with climate change. 

Finally, in step 5, the team explores options to enhance resilience and pursue economic 

opportunities that could come with climate change. The team works with the community to 

identify actions that the public and private sectors can take to increase resilience. The actions 

included in this step are a sample of actions communities might choose to take and were selected 

because they bring multiple benefits in addition to building resilience or adapting to climate 

change. 

Being resilient to climate change is essential for a community’s long-term well-being. 

Understanding climate-related impacts and preparing for new opportunities can improve the 

community’s overall economic success and might even help attract new investment and new 

businesses. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

iv

Table of Contents 

Executive Summary ......................................................................................................................... i

I. Introduction ..................................................................................................................................1

II. Using the Framework ..................................................................................................................6

Step 1: Organize ..............................................................................................................................8

1.1 Establish the Assessment Team ............................................................................................ 8

1.2 Define the Community of Interest ...................................................................................... 11

1.3 Set Objectives for the Assessment ...................................................................................... 12

Step 2: Evaluate Projected Climate Change Impacts and Hazards................................................13

2.1 Select Climate Change Scenarios ....................................................................................... 13

2.2 Assess Hazards.................................................................................................................... 14

2.3 Select a Method for Spatial Analysis .................................................................................. 15

Step 3: Identify Community Assets and Their Vulnerability ........................................................17

3.1 Develop an Assessment Methodology ................................................................................ 17

3.2 Identify Community Assets at Risk .................................................................................... 21

3.3 Define and Apply a Local Vulnerability Scale ................................................................... 25

3.4 Assess Potential Positive and Negative Impacts on Economic Activity ........................... 26 

Step 4: Analyze Overall Economic Implications for the Community ...........................................32

Step 5: Explore Options to Enhance Resilience and Pursue Opportunities...................................35

5.1 Raise Public Awareness and Garner Support ..................................................................... 35

5.2 Identify Actions to Enhance Economic Resilience and Pursue Opportunities ................... 36

III. Conclusion ...............................................................................................................................62

Appendix A: EPA Smart Growth Implementation Assistance Program .......................................63

Appendix B: Resources on Climate Change, Smart Growth, and Economic Resilience ..............64

Appendix C: Supplemental Information on Hazard Exposure Assessment ..................................66

Appendix D: Sample Economic Vulnerability Assessment Questions .........................................74
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

1

I. Introduction 

All businesses, irrespective of size, location, and products or services offered, are affected by 

weather and climate. While climate change is creating a more uncertain and challenging 

environment, it also can create opportunities to develop new products and services and build 

more resilient communities and economies. Businesses depend on their local communities for 

their workforce, customer base, supplies, and reliable transportation and utility infrastructure.

Likewise, communities depend on businesses for goods and services, tax revenue, and 

employment. Having a climate-resilient economyone that can withstand or recover quickly 

and efficiently from climate impacts in the short and long termsis essential to a community’s 

well-being. Business and industry leaders can work with community leaders to develop 

resilience strategies that make them more competitive. Community leaders can use resilience 

strategies to design smarter and more prosperous communities that better protect human health 

and property and attract business and tourism. 

The framework described in this document 

can help communities assess their economic 

vulnerability to climate change and explore 

options to become more economically 

resilient and take advantage of new business 

opportunities. 

Who should use this framework? 

The most likely primary users of this 

framework are local government staff, 

particularly planning and economic 

development staff, because of the breadth of 

expertise and information required. 

However, many private businesses, 

commercial property owners, and business 

associations also are thinking about how to 

improve their resilience and capitalize on 

new opportunities as the climate changes. 

Business leaders could use this framework to 

engage other community leaders and 

encourage the local government to convene a 

team to work through the assessment. 

Having private-sector representatives on that 

team is essential to the success of this 

assessment. 

Figure 1: Smart Growth Strategies and Resilience

Where and how communities develop profoundly 

affects their resilience to extreme events. Smart growth 

strategies, which promote compact, mixed-use, 

walkable communities that protect ecologically and 

economically valuable open space and offer housing 

and transportation options, can help communities 

develop in ways that also make them better prepared 

for climate change. For example:

 Development in areas more vulnerable to storm

surges, sea level rise, or riverine flooding puts

people and property at risk. Property owners or

tenants have to protect their property and

sometimes evacuate. The community often has

to take expensive measures to protect the area

or rescue people stranded there in a disaster.

 Compact communities use water more

efficiently, as they have shorter pipe networks to

distribute the water and less water is lost to

leaks. Water efficiency is particularly important in

the face of projected increases in droughts.

 Development patterns influence transportation

options, and transportation networks are vital to

evacuating people before a natural disaster,

rescuing them during the disaster, and rebuilding

after the disaster. Businesses rely on

transportation networks every day to bring in

employees, customers, and supplies and to send

out goods. Before, during, and after a disaster,

businesses want reliable access to their facilities

to make sure their staff, buildings, equipment,

and inventory are safe.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

2

Interested members of the business community 

also can consider the options in step 5.2 to make 

individual businesses and properties more 

resilient to climate hazards. 

How can the framework fit with other 

planning efforts? 

Local governments already have numerous plans 

and planning efforts that guide development and 

affect business vitality, including comprehensive, 

economic development, capital improvement, 

transportation improvement, strategic, sector, and 

stormwater plans. The framework can both 

inform and be informed by those plans. 

Communities can use their existing plans as they 

work through the framework, since issues such as 

vulnerability to floods will have been addressed 

in the local hazard mitigation plan and perhaps 

the comprehensive plan. Conversely, the results 

of this framework analysis can be folded into 

updates of other plans, such as incorporating 

flood resilience projects in capital improvement 

plans and encouraging new development in safer 

areas in the comprehensive plan. The framework 

assessment also can be conducted as a standalone process to inform ongoing and future 

community planning. 

Coordinating the framework with the 

comprehensive plan can provide a mechanism for 

implementing the policies and actions that would 

enhance resilience in the local economy. For 

example, a community could use its 

comprehensive plan (and possibly its capital 

improvement plan) to encourage reinforcing 

infrastructure important to local businesses if the 

framework reveals those assets are vulnerable. 

North Kingstown, the community that tested this 

framework, was in the process of updating its 

comprehensive plan while it was undertaking the 

framework assessment. Many of the 

vulnerabilities identified through the framework process 

Figure 2: Key Concepts and Terms

Adapt, adaptation: “Adjustment in natural or 

human systems to a new or changing environment 

that exploits beneficial opportunities or 

moderates negative effect.”*

Climate: The weather averaged over a long period 

of time, typically 30 years or more.** 

Climate change: “A change in the state of the 

climate that can be identified (e.g., using statistical 

tests) by changes in the mean and/or the 

variability of its properties that persist for an 

extended period, typically decades or longer.”**

Hazard: “The potential occurrence of a natural or 

human-induced physical event or trend or physical 

impact that may cause loss of life, injury, or other 

health impacts, as well as damage and loss to 

property, infrastructure, livelihoods, service 

provision, ecosystems, and environmental 

resources.”**

Resilience: “A capability to anticipate, prepare for, 

respond to, and recover from significant multihazard threats with minimum damage to social 

well-being, the economy, and the environment.”*

Risk: “A combination of the magnitude of the 

potential consequence(s) of climate change 

impact(s) and the likelihood that the 

consequence(s) will occur.”*

Vulnerability: “The degree to which a system is 

susceptible to, or unable to cope with, adverse 

effects of climate change, including climate 

variability and extremes. Vulnerability is a function 

of the character, magnitude, and rate of climate 

variation to which a system is exposed, its 

sensitivity, and its ability to adapt.”*

Weather: The atmospheric conditions at a 

particular place in terms of air temperature, 

barometric pressure, humidity, wind speed, and 

rainfall. Weather is what is happening now or is 

likely to happen in the very near future. 

* National Research Council. America's Climate

Choices: Panel on Adapting to the Impacts of Climate 

Change. National Academy of Sciences, 2010. p. 19. 

** Agard, J., et al, Eds. “Annex II: Glossary”. In 

IPCC, 2014: Climate Change 2014: Impacts, 

Adaptation, and Vulnerability. (Field, C.B., et al Eds.). 

Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, and 

New York. 2014.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

3

required action that only the planning board or town council 

could authorize. The framework helped identify the ways in 

which the local economy is vulnerable, giving those issues 

visibility in the community and in town hall. By including 

actions to address these issues in the comprehensive plan, 

local officials take responsibility for improving the 

resilience of the community’s economic assets. 

A. How the Framework Was Developed 

As part of Rhode Island’s effort to write a new economic 

development plan, the state’s Division of Planning 

recognized the need to help communities build resilience 

into their economic development planning, decisionmaking, and implementation. The division requested help 

from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 

Smart Growth Implementation Assistance Program (see 

appendix A for more information on the program) to 

develop a framework to help communities analyze major 

Source: Tetra Tech

Figure 3: Rhode Island with North 

Kingstown highlighted. 

climate change impacts (both negative and positive) on 

local economic activity and identify actions that the 

local government and private businesses could 

undertake to build resilience. EPA hired a consultant 

team that included Renaissance Planning Group and 

Tetra Tech, Inc. 

The Division of Planning selected the town of North 

Kingstown as a pilot location to test and refine the 

process and results (Figures 3 and 4). North 

Kingstown had already done some work on climate 

change adaptation, including working with Rhode 

Island Sea Grant to map sea level rise and storm 

surge scenarios, identify vulnerable transportation 

and real estate assets, and incorporate hazard 

mitigation strategies into its comprehensive plan. 

More than 14,000 people work in North Kingstown 

at a variety of scales and sectors of economic 

activity. The Quonset Business Park, the state’s 

largest employer, houses 164 businesses with more 

than 10,000 employees and has the state’s most 

active deep-water port. In historic Wickford Village, 

a variety of small businesses rely on tourism. 

Manufacturing employs about 4,400 people. Because 

Source: Tetra Tech

Figure 4: North Kingstown.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

4

of this variety of industries and types of businesses, North Kingstown is a useful model for not 

only the rest of the state, but other communities around the country as well.

The North Kingstown pilot of the framework was undertaken by volunteers from several local 

boards, the Quonset Development Corporation, and town staff. These participants applied the 

framework to local conditions and identified the aspects of their economy that are most 

vulnerable to climate change hazards. Their experience is described in more detail as examples 

to illustrate some of the framework steps.

In developing the framework, the consultant team examined projected climate change impacts 

and considered how those impacts affect local economies.

B. Climate Change Impacts 

The 2014 National Climate Assessment 

summarizes changes to the global climate and 

observed and projected impacts in the United 

States. For the country as a whole, temperatures 

are projected to continue to rise. The higher 

temperatures contribute to shifts in precipitation 

patterns, rising sea levels, and changes in 

extreme weather events, which vary by region. 

For example, in the Northeast region, the 

assessment notes that, “Between 1895 and 2011, 

temperatures in the Northeast increased by 

almost 2 ̊F (0.16 ̊F per decade), and precipitation 

increased by approximately five inches, or more 

than 10 percent (0.4 inches per decade). Coastal 

flooding has increased due to a rise in sea level 

of approximately 1 foot since 1900.”

1 These 

trends are projected to continue (Figure 5). 

The assessment also describes how extreme 

weather is likely to strain many regions’

transportation, communications, energy, and 

water and waste infrastructure. Flooding and sea 

Source: Melillo, J.M., Terese (T.C.) Richmond, and G.W. Yohe, 

Eds. Climate Change Impacts in the United States: The Third 

National Climate Assessment. Ch. 16: Northeast. U.S. Global 

Change Research Program, 2014.

Figure 5: Projected climate change impacts for the 

Northeastern United States.

level rise can put infrastructure and equipment 

out of commission by inundating them, and 

repeated flooding and saltwater corrosion can 

cause longer-term problems by requiring more 

frequent maintenance. Aging infrastructure is 

1

 Melillo, J.M., Terese (T.C.) Richmond, and G.W. Yohe, Eds. Climate Change Impacts in the United States: The 

Third National Climate Assessment. Ch. 16: Northeast. U.S. Global Change Research Program,. 2014. p. 373. 

nca2014.globalchange.gov/report/regions/northeast. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

5

particularly vulnerable. Extreme heat can increase energy demand for cooling. Storms can 

disrupt electricity and water service. These disruptions of infrastructure and services can have 

severe financial consequences for local businesses and economies. The National Climate 

Assessment notes the interconnectedness of U.S. infrastructure systems, saying that, “The links 

between and among energy, water, and land sectors mean that they are susceptible to cascading 

effects from one sector to the next.”

2

C. Climate Change Impacts on Local Economies 

Communities can face many stressors, such as rapid population increases or losses, aging public 

infrastructure, economic fluctuations, volatile or unpredictable energy prices, and natural 

hazards. Climate change is likely to exacerbate many of these challenges—for example, by 

damaging infrastructure, which requires more frequent repair and maintenance and costs local 

and state governments more money, or changing environmental conditions in ways that affect 

local industries such as fisheries or tourism. A resilient community will continue to thrive in the 

face of those stressors. 

A resilient community will also find ways to adapt its economy to opportunities that arise from 

the changing climate. Opportunities could come from changing consumer preferences, 

consumption patterns, demands for new products and services (including those that are climate 

resilient), major public infrastructure engineering and construction, and alternative supply chain 

services. 

Businesses that can operate with minimal interruption during and after extreme weather events 

could have a competitive advantage over less-prepared companies. Similarly, communities that 

help their businesses prepare and protect their transportation, utilities, and other essential assets 

and services could be more attractive to businesses looking for more secure locations. 

2

 Hibbard, K., et al. Ch. 10: Energy, Water, and Land Use. Climate Change Impacts in the United States: The Third 

National Climate Assessment. J.M. Melillo, Terese (T.C.) Richmond, and G.W. Yohe, Eds., U.S. Global Change 

Research Program, 2014. p. 259. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

6

II. Using the Framework

The planning framework is intended to help communities recognize their economic vulnerabilities 

and identify ways to become more climate resilient, with a focus on helping the business community 

to prepare for and adapt to projected changes and prosper in a changing climate. The framework 

assesses a specified area such as a town, municipality, or larger region. It recognizes the 

interdependencies of municipalities and local businesses, and the role of both as critical elements in 

economic resilience and growth. It can help identify climate-resilient strategies to incorporate into 

other local land use, revitalization, and economic development plans. 

The framework is designed to be flexible and adaptable. Communities can use all or portions of 

the framework as appropriate. For example, some communities might already have conducted a 

climate change vulnerability assessment and would be able to skip some steps. Communities 

with varying levels of expertise, time, and funds can adapt the framework to the resources they 

have. If a community has a geographic information system (GIS) that maps its infrastructure 

assets, it can conduct a more robust mapping exercise.3 If a community does not have GIS or a 

GIS specialist, a local college or university, state agency, or regional entity might be able to 

provide assistance, or the community might have the resources to hire a private firm. Otherwise, 

the community can use existing data and resources to make assumptions and explore how 

climate-related impacts could affect its economic future. 

Figure 6 compares the qualitative and quantitative approaches. With the qualitative approach, 

users would rely on existing maps, interviews, and desktop research to identify vulnerabilities. 

3

 GIS provides a computerized assessment tool that integrates, stores, edits, analyzes, shares, and displays 

geographic information to inform decision-making. GIS software allows users to create searches, analyze spatial 

information, edit data in maps, and present results. 

• Less intensive

• Provides general idea of impact

• Best for community with fewer

resources or no access to GIS specialist

• Sample result: Approximately 30

businesses worth $60 million are

located along the shoreline and will

probably be affected by coastal storms.

Qualitative Approach

• More intensive

• Provides detailed information about

impact

• Requires more resources and access to

a GIS specialist

• Sample result: Twenty-two businesses

are projected to be in inundation areas

with a water depth of at least 3 feet,

exposing $42 million of value to

potential damage and losses.

Quantitative Approach

Figure 6: Comparison of qualitative and quantitative approaches to the framework.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

7

With the quantitative approach, users would use GIS and community asset information to 

identify vulnerabilities, which would provide flood depth, infrastructure loss estimates, and other 

quantitative information. GIS also is helpful as a visualization tool that can help stakeholders 

better understand climate change impacts and identify adaptation options. 

The framework is designed to leverage previous community assessment efforts. For example, 

communities that have already conducted a climate vulnerability analysis and know which local 

assets are most at risk can likely spend fewer resources on step 2, which is designed to highlight 

exposed assets. Information from the comprehensive plan or hazard mitigation plan can also help 

with conducting the assessment or developing options to increase economic resilience. 

This chapter walks users through applying the framework using the steps illustrated in Figure 7. 

Figure 7: Steps in the framework to plan for a climate-resilient economy. 

Step 1: Organize

1.1 Establish the assessment team

1.2 Define the community of interest

1.3 Set objectives for the assessment

Step 2: Evaluate Projected Climate Change Impacts and Hazards

2.1 Select climate change scenarios

2.2 Assess hazards

2.3 Select a method for spatial analysis

Step 3: Identify Community Assets and Their Vulnerability

3.1 Develop an assessment methodology

3.2 Identify community assets at risk

3.3 Define and apply a local vulnerability scale

3.4 Assess potential positive and negative impacts on economic 

activity

Step 4: Analyze Overall Economic Implications for the 

Community

Step 5: Explore Options to Enhance Resilience and Pursue 

Opportunities

5.1 Raise public awareness and garner support

5.2 Identify actions to enhance economic resilience and pursue opportunities
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

8

Step 1: Organize 

Getting the right team members involved from the beginning and having clearly defined 

boundaries and goals will help the assessment succeed. Initial, organizational actions are:

1.1. Establish the assessment team. 

1.2. Define the community of interest. 

1.3. Set objectives for the assessment. 

1.1 Establish the Assessment Team 

The first step is to determine who will lead the assessment effort and identify the team that will 

work through the framework. This guide assumes that a municipal staff person, most likely from 

the planning or economic development department, will lead the effort. Although others in the 

community could take this role, they would likely need support from the local government to 

convene the necessary stakeholders and gather data. 

The person or entity taking the lead on the tool will need to put together a team. The economic 

assessment will likely touch on many community assets and economic sectors. Therefore, the 

assessment team will need members with specialized technical expertise and sector-specific 

knowledge, as well as members who understand climate hazards. Planning climate-resilient 

economic measures will require integrated strategies with multiple sectors working together to 

identify gaps and opportunities to integrate climate adaptation into economic development; land 

use; and other community plans, programs, and policies. Consider recruiting staff and agencies

that will need to incorporate the strategies developed through this framework into the 

community’s comprehensive, economic development, capital improvement, transportation 

improvement, strategic, sector, stormwater, and other relevant plans, as well as local ordinances 

such as the building code, zoning ordinance, flood plain regulations, and subdivision regulations.

Ensure also that the team includes members who have a good understanding of environmental 

justice issues and can help the team incorporate the needs of low-income, minority, or 

overburdened communities and maximize opportunities for those communities.

Appropriate team members might include: 

 Municipal department staff, including:

o Planning staff: Can provide the master plan, land use data, community asset data,

transportation data, population data, and other information.

o Emergency management staff: Can provide the hazard mitigation plan and other

emergency preparedness and response information.

Sub-step objective: Assemble a team to conduct the assessment representing all the 

necessary stakeholders and expertise. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

9

o Economic development staff: Can provide economic development plan, economic

data, understanding of the area’s economic strengths and weaknesses, and knowledge

of businesses and infrastructure on which they rely. Staff could come from a local,

county, or multijurisdictional economic development agency.

o GIS specialist: Can provide maps and data on elevation, flood plains, land use,

critical facilities, demographics, environmental assets, and other elements.

o Public works and transportation staff: Can provide information on utility and

transportation assets and identify building vulnerability characteristics such as

foundation type and first-floor elevation.

o Tax assessor, finance, or budget staff: Can provide parcel information to help

identify property owners who will be affected.

o Public health staff: Often play a role in land use planning and permitting

commercial properties and can provide information on public health needs during and

after an emergency.

 Elected officials: Could become champions for the effort and help build the political will

to implement adaptation strategies developed through this assessment.

 Business community: Might have knowledge of potential impacts of climate change on

business and can provide a business perspective on the assessment. Engaging the

business community, including commercial property owners, business owners, and

associations or trade groups, helps ensure that results are relevant and useful. Business

leaders could also become champions for the effort.

 Chamber of commerce: Could facilitate contacts with businesses that might be

interested in participating in the assessment and identifying new economic opportunities.

The chamber could also help build awareness and advocate for resilience.

 Members of local boards and other community leaders: Bring insight from experience

with local government and specific issues that their boards deal with, such as natural

resources, transportation, planning, emergency management, and economic development.

 Insurance companies: Have the expertise to look at buildings and properties and assess

risks. They can also help identify mitigation actions that can help a business make

changes to its facility to better withstand and recover from hazards, as well as lower the

insurance premium because risks are reduced.

 Transit agency staff: Have information on transit routes, ridership, resilience of

infrastructure, transit system’s ability to function in an emergency, and other information.

 Regional planning staff: Could include staff from councils of governments,

metropolitan planning organizations, and similar entities that have information on

regional economic, transportation, land use, health, environmental, emergency response,

infrastructure, and other issues.

 State agency staff: Could have experts and data on climate-related impacts, government

facilities, debris management plans, historical impacts, smart growth and economic
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

10

development resources, state hazard mitigation plans, transportation infrastructure and 

data, and other information.

 Federal agency staff: Might be able to identify experts and data on smart growth

strategies and climate assessment and adaptation, flood plains, surge inundation areas,

elevation data, sea level rise data, hazardous materials facilities, repetitive loss facility

data, historical impacts, and other information. Relevant agencies could include EPA,

Department of Transportation, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA),

Economic Development Administration, Small Business Administration, and Department

of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

 Nonprofit organizations: Might have specialized expertise and tools to support the

effort; knowledge of the community that could help assess impacts; or good relationships

with businesses, populations, or interests from which the team needs to hear.

 University faculty or students: Might provide downscaled climate data and analysis,

student volunteers, subject matter experts, advanced modeling, or data collection.

Regardless of who is on the assessment team, it should stay in contact with the business 

community, local associations, elected officials, municipal staff, and the public throughout the 

process of applying the framework. Their input at different stages can provide crucial 

information for the assessment. Just as importantly, the team’s process should be transparent. 

The team could create a web page to track progress on the assessment, provide updates at

regularly scheduled meetings like chamber of commerce events or city council meetings, host 

public discussions, and meet individually with stakeholders.

NORTH KINGSTOWN EXAMPLE

The assessment team consisted of members of local boards (Conservation Commission, Economic Development Advisory Board [EDAB], and Wickford Economic Development Advisory 

Board), the strategic planning manager of Quonset Development Corporation, and town staff. 

One advantage of tapping the expertise of local volunteer board members was their knowledge 

from their “day jobs” and other experience. One participant from EDAB works for the Coastal 

Resources Center and Rhode Island Sea Grant at the University of Rhode Island. She conducted 

much of the work on sea level rise, storm surge, and municipal adaptation that served as a 

foundation for the town’s use of the framework. Another participant from EDAB is the 

membership coordinator of the North Kingstown Chamber of Commerce, a key group for 

reaching out to local businesses. One participant from the Conservation Commission previously 

worked for the Parks and Recreation Division of Rhode Island’s Department of Environmental 

Management, and another serves on the town’s Ground Water Committee.

These board members, along with senior staff from Quonset Development Corporation and the 

town’s Planning Department, brought a wealth of local knowledge and technical expertise to the 

analysis. The challenge for the local board members, not surprisingly, was that they already 

volunteer significant amounts of their free time to serve on the boards, so participating in this 

pilot took time above and beyond their normal responsibilities, which they graciously did.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

11

1.2 Define the Community of Interest

Sub-step objective: Establish the geographic area and economic sectors the team will 

examine. 

Basic information about the community can help define the assessment’s parameters.

Geographic area 

The geographic boundary will determine the business establishments and assets that the team 

will consider in the assessment. While municipal boundaries might be the simplest and most 

obvious choice, other considerations can help determine the assessment’s geographic scale. For 

instance, the team might want to assess critical infrastructure (e.g., airports, utilities, or industrial 

complexes) or natural resources (e.g., water sources, wetlands, or flood plains) that are outside 

municipal boundaries. The framework can work at local, regional, and broader scales, but it is 

important to determine the scale from the beginning to understand the magnitude of the 

undertaking. The scale will influence the goals of the assessment. 

NORTH KINGSTOWN EXAMPLE

The assessment team used the town boundaries to define the geographic area. 

Primary economic activities 

The assessment needs a general economic profile of the community. The assessment team should 

identify the community’s major economic sectors and primary economic development priorities 

and determine which of them are relevant to the assessment. This analysis will help identify 

businesses to engage in the process and help ensure that the assessment aligns with the 

community’s economic development objectives. Market sectors might include:

 Agriculture and landscaping.

 Defense industries and military installations.

 Energy and utilities.

 Engineering, planning, and design.

 Retail, restaurants, and consumer services.

 Fisheries and aquaculture.

 Innovation industries such as biosciences and information technology.

 Insurance and real estate.

 Manufacturing.

 Ports and marine trades and transportation.

 Tourism.

The team might also find it helpful to categorize economic activity based on characteristics that 

could put businesses at particular risk or position them to capitalize on opportunities, such as:
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

12

 Businesses with significant inventory on site.

 Businesses that design, build, and maintain structures and infrastructure.

 Businesses that rely mainly on natural resources like the ocean or land.

 Businesses that provide critical functions to other businesses (e.g., utilities or freight).

 Small and/or locally serving businesses.

 Tourism-based businesses.

 Businesses that rely on constant flow of materials and goods by truck or rail or have a

significant electric or gas load. Disruptions to transportation or utilities could force

businesses to close until service is restored.

The team would use whatever method works best to help the community understand its current 

economic base. 

NORTH KINGSTOWN EXAMPLE

The team examined sectors important to the town’s economy and character: transportation, 

industrial operations (by geographic area), commercial operations (by geographic area), 

agriculture and fisheries operations, and natural resources. 

1.3 Set Objectives for the Assessment 

Sub-step objective: Establish objectives for the assessment to help ensure a clear and 

common purpose among team members. 

The framework’s intent is to help the community understand important implications of climaterelated impacts on its economy. The team can clarify its purpose and provide the foundation for 

using the assessment by answering questions such as: 

 How will the assessment help the community and its economy?

 What specific questions does the team hope to answer by working through the

assessment? Examples could include, “Which businesses are most at risk?” or “In which

areas should the community prioritize investments or policy changes?”

 What level of effort (i.e., funding and time commitment) can the team put forth? Is this

level of effort sufficient to answer the questions the team wants answered?

 What is the target date for finishing the assessment? Is there any forcing event such as an

upcoming election or a deadline for completing a comprehensive plan update? What are

realistic milestones to achieve objectives?

 How can this assessment be integrated with other community plans, including the

comprehensive, hazard mitigation, capital improvement, transportation, and economic

development plans?
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

13

Step 2: Evaluate Projected Climate Change Impacts and Hazards 

Once the team is organized, the next step is to evaluate which climate change impacts, such as 

flooding, sea level rise, storm surge, drought, and extreme heat, could affect the community and 

over what time period. In this step, the team will: 

2.1. Select climate change scenarios. 

2.2. Assess hazards. 

2.3. Select a method for spatial analysis. 

The assessment team can choose to use a basic, moderate, or more advanced approach for this 

step, depending on available resources (Figure 8). The factors include the team’s level of 

technical expertise in impact assessment (e.g., climate change, hazard, and spatial analysis), 

available resources (e.g., computer equipment, funding, and time), and the type of hazard maps 

that are available. 

Basic Approach Moderate Approach Advanced Approach

Team

includes

No technical 

specialists for climate 

and spatial analysis

Technical specialists for 

climate and spatial analysis 

(minimum of GIS specialist)

Technical specialists for 

climate and spatial analysis 

(climate and/or risk modeler)

Funding Limited Moderate to high Moderate to high

Computers Basic, no mapping GIS software GIS software

Maps Hard copy only Digital Digital

Figure 8: Guide to help the team choose an approach to assessing projected climate change impacts and hazards.

If the community has completed a climate vulnerability analysis, the team should review the 

analysis to make sure it meets the needs of this assessment. If it does, the team can follow the 

basic approach and summarize the vulnerability analysis results in step 2 to set the stage for the 

economic assessment in step 3.

If the community has not yet conducted a climate vulnerability analysis, step 2 can help establish 

which parts of the community are likely to be affected by climate-related impacts and which 

assets in or related to those areas could affect the economy if hit by a hazard. The community 

could still use the basic approach to evaluate impacts. 

2.1 Select Climate Change Scenarios 

Sub-step objective: Establish which climate scenario projections to use for context in the 

economic assessment. 

Least time required Most time required
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

14

Climate change scenarios show how the world might look in the future depending on how global 

greenhouse gas emissions increase or decrease. If the community has already conducted a 

climate vulnerability assessment, the team can select projections from that analysis to use for 

economic assessment. Community economic development leaders are often interested in longer 

range projections to have time to plan for anticipated trends, while individual businesses might 

want to look 15 or 30 years into the future, depending on their product or service and lease or 

ownership status. The team can consider the objectives and resources that it established in step 1 

and select the most appropriate scenarios. 

If the community does not have a completed climate vulnerability assessment or other related 

studies from which to draw, the team will need to determine what it will use based on how it 

intends to obtain climate impact information and what is available. 

For the basic approach, communities with no climate change projections for their geographic 

area can use regional scenarios developed for the National Climate Assessment and tools from 

federal agencies and nongovernmental groups to get a general sense of impacts likely to occur in 

their region (see appendix C for links to resources). Some states have more regionally specific 

climate change projections, and some regions have also developed finer-grained projections. For 

the moderate or advanced approach, the team can work with climate change specialists to 

develop finer-grained projections for the community. Many universities have climate change 

specialists who could help conduct more in-depth analyses of local climate change projections. 

To ensure it can explain and defend the assumptions underlying the assessment, the team should 

document the climate change scenarios it selected and why (e.g., data availability or relationship 

to the community goals and objectives). The team should keep in mind, however, that just as 

communities use demographic, economic, and other estimates and projections in planning and 

decision-making, it can use a plausible future scenario such as those described in the National 

Climate Assessment as a reasonable basis for the assessment. It does not need to narrow down 

projections to precise numbers, simply to a plausible range for future conditions. 

2.2 Assess Hazards 

Once the assessment team has selected the climate change scenarios, it will assess hazards 

considered under those scenarios. This document focuses on the economic assessment 

methodology and assumes the team will be able to access climate hazard assessment results and 

use them in the economic impact analysis. 

The experts on the assessment team or other partners can provide information such as results 

from hard-copy maps (for the basic approach), GIS analysis results (for the moderate 

approach), or web tool applications (for the advanced approach) for each hazard type. A

community without immediate access to existing hazard assessments can refer to appendix C for 

Sub-step objective: For each climate hazard of concern, determine which portion or 

portions of the community’s geographic area are projected to be affected. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

15

some ideas on obtaining assessments. The team also can run a preliminary analysis using 

EJSCREEN to identify existing environmental impacts.4 The climate hazard impact areas to 

locate will depend on the hazards of greatest concern to the community. The following examples 

are based on projected hazards for the northeastern United States, but other hazards such as 

wildfires can be included where appropriate: 

Sea level rise: For coastal communities affected by sea level rise, the team can 

generate a map of the area expected to be inundated at high tide under the 

selected climate change scenarios. The team can summarize the projections of 

the depth of the water and the geographic boundary of the inundation area from 

the various tools or studies it uses for the selected scenarios. 

Flood and storm surge: The team can determine the boundaries of the areas 

where water is expected to temporarily inundate land to a specific, problematic 

depth during or immediately after a storm.

Extreme heat and drought: In most cases, the spatial gradient for temperature 

and drought conditions will be very low or unnoticeable at the local scale. 

Unless assessment tool results suggest otherwise, the team can assume that the 

entire community will have approximately the same changes in the number of 

extreme heat days or drought frequency under the selected climate scenarios.

2.3 Select a Method for Spatial Analysis 

The basic approach gives the team a general sense of the impacts the community might 

experience using online tools and hard-copy maps. Although a community might use this 

approach as a starting point to raise awareness of potential impacts and vulnerabilities, the basic 

approach is not sufficient for developing land use regulations or making infrastructure siting or 

other engineering decisions. For team planning purposes, analysis of each climate-induced 

hazard (e.g., storm, flood, drought) for a community the size of North Kingstown could take 

approximately eight to 24 hours. The team can approximate affected areas and identify the assets 

to create a general consequence assessment that estimates what would be affected and how that 

might affect the community.

The moderate approach gives the team a better sense of the location and magnitude of potential 

impacts. The team would use digital data and GIS tools for this approach. This analysis might 

take more time and resources, depending on the availability of GIS data, but it can provide a 

more accurate depiction of the assets exposed to climate-related hazards and help the community 

identify appropriate adaptation strategies. For a community the size of North Kingstown, 

analysis of each climate-induced hazard could take from four to 80 hours, depending on the level 

4 EJSCREEN is EPA’s environmental justice mapping and screening tool that lets users access high-resolution 

environmental and demographic information. It is available at www.epa.gov/ejscreen. 

Sub-step objective: Establish how the location of community assets affected by the various 

climate-related hazards will be identified, analyzed, and communicated. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

16

of data available and analysis required. The team can map affected assets and areas and create a 

more detailed consequence assessment that maps community impacts. The team could also 

conduct an exposure estimate using the value of the assets in the affected areas. 

The advanced approach allows the team to 

estimate detailed potential economic losses in a 

GIS format. This approach gives the community a 

better sense of the magnitude of potential impacts 

and could help justify any adaptation strategies the 

community eventually chooses. However, it 

requires Hazus modeling expertise and sufficient 

resources to conduct the more detailed analysis. 

Hazus is a free, nationally applicable standardized 

methodology that contains models for estimating 

potential losses from earthquakes, floods, and 

hurricanes.5 Hazus uses GIS technology to 

estimate physical, economic, and social impacts of 

disasters and graphically illustrates the boundaries 

of locations at high risk. For a community the size 

of North Kingstown, analysis of each climateinduced hazard could take from eight to 80 hours,

Source: Tetra Tech

Figure 9: Sample Hazus map developed for North 

Kingstown.

depending on the level of data available and 

analysis required. The team can map affected 

assets and areas, including direct and business 

interruption losses. This methodology produces a 

loss estimate based on the severity of the climate-induced hazard along with the exposure 

estimate. The team can conduct a functionality assessment to identify the critical assets and 

lifelines that will be functional, which can lead to a very detailed consequence assessment. 

5 Hazus can be downloaded from FEMA’s Map Service Center at msc.fema.gov/portal/resources/hazus. This web

page includes links to Hazus training and user groups. 

NORTH KINGSTOWN EXAMPLE

North Kingstown took a hybrid approach and used hard-copy maps (basic approach) that 

depicted land use, transportation infrastructure, flood plains, and other features as well as maps 

generated by Hazus modeling (advanced approach). The Hazus-generated maps showed flood 

inundation depths as well as locations of affected businesses and utilities with and without sea 

level rise. The Hazus output also included maps that showed the economic value of the assets 

that would be affected by flooding, with and without sea level rise. The Hazus analysis, 

however, did not address all of the hazards expected to occur in North Kingstown as the 

climate changes, such as wind damage and drought, so the participants in the pilot also 

considered land use maps and other information in their assessments, such as the state of the 

town’s aquifers, which provide water for drinking and irrigation and are susceptible to drought. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

17

Step 3: Identify Community Assets and Their Vulnerability 

In this step, the team identifies critical local economic assets that might be at risk from climate 

change impacts and how vulnerable they are. The actions are: 

3.1. Develop an assessment methodology. 

3.2. Identify community assets at risk. 

3.3. Define and apply a local vulnerability scale. 

3.4. Assess potential positive and negative impacts on economic activity. 

3.1 Develop an Assessment Methodology 

The components of a local economy that might be most affected by climate change, and to what 

extent, will depend on multiple factors such as the amount of each type of local asset at risk, the 

characteristics of each asset, the type of hazard, and the overall nature of the community’s 

economy. Users can modify the methodology presented in this document to reflect local realities, 

capture the significance of specific economic assets, and determine their relative climate-related 

vulnerability for the purposes of this assessment. The methodology’s basic goal is to answer the 

following questions for each economic asset: 

 Is it exposed?

 If it is, what would be the effect on operations?

 How adaptable is it?

Many options exist for evaluating and organizing information during this process. Table 1

provides a sample assessment form that users can adapt as needed; steps 3.2 through 3.4 walk 

through filling out this form. Table 2 shows how the North Kingstown team filled out the form. 

Using the assessment form, the team inventories locally important economic assets and creates a 

starting point for assessing each asset’s vulnerability to better understand the potential collective 

threat of climate-related hazards to the local economy. The team can also begin to identify 

opportunities and activities that could mitigate the impacts and make the community more 

resilient. For teams using Hazus, potential relevant output from the model is listed in Table 1.

Examining all the elements of a community related to its economy can be an overwhelming task. 

The team will likely need to prioritize which assets to examine in depth by selecting the ones that 

are the most critical to the community’s economy—meaning that their failure would severely 

affect the local economy. Formal assessment tools exist,6but the team could informally 

6 For example, see: Federal Highway Administration. “Assessing Criticality in Transportation Adaptation Planning.” 

2014. www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/climate_change/adaptation/adaptation_framework/modules/criticality_guidance. 

This guidance was developed for transportation assets, but the basic concepts are relevant to economic 

considerations. 

Sub-step objective: Create, select, and/or adapt a methodology for conducting the 

assessment that best fits the community’s context, needs, and capacity.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

18

determine assets that are critical to the community’s economy by reviewing economic data and 

talking to key stakeholders. Some critical components might be obvious, like a road that is 

essential for getting goods in and out, a company that is the largest employer in the community, 

or utilities that supply power and water. Others might be less evident, like a supplier that other 

companies rely on for raw materials. 

As the changes and risks become clearer, the assessment team can work to identify how those 

changes open up new economic opportunities. By focusing on the ways in which climate-related 

impacts might affect the essential drivers of a local economy, the team can begin to pinpoint 

where the most severe threats or best opportunities might exist. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy

19

 Table 1: Sample form to assess economic effects of climate impacts 

Vulnerability Rating as 

Defined by the Team (see 

step 3.3)—for example, High 

(H), Moderate (M), Low (L), or 

None (N)

Community Assets (see step 3.2)

Sea Level RiseFloo

d

Storm SurgeDroughtExtreme Heat

Description of Potential Impacts on Economic Activity

(see step 3.4)

Transportation

Describe transportation infrastructure affected: 

names and locations of street segments; bridges;

transit, bike, and pedestrian facilities; etc. Note 

routes with no viable alternatives that would cause 

major disruption if damaged. Level of detail 

depends on scale of community being assessed.

E.g., estimated number of users affected and how they are 

affected, such as employees being unable to get to work or 

customers to businesses or an inability to receive supplies or ship 

goods out. (Hazus outputs: bridge damage, loss, and functionality)

Utilities and Emergency Response Operations

Describe types and locations of affected utility

infrastructure and critical emergency response 

functions.

E.g., estimated number or percentage of customers affected by 

utility outages and how they are likely to be affected, such as 

businesses unable to operate without power, communications, 

water, or sewer service, and facilities for fire, police, medical, and 

other critical services that need to operate in an emergency.

(Hazus outputs: potable water, wastewater, electric, gas, and oil 

facility damage and functionality)

Industrial Operations

List names and locations of affected industrial

areas or facilities.

To extent possible, describe types or percentage of industries 

affected (e.g., 10 percent of manufacturing facilities in the 

community) and how they are likely to be affected, such as being 

unable to open because of damage to the facility or inaccessibility 

to employees, suppliers, and customers; impacts to employees 

and customers; loss of inventory; or interruptions in supply chain. 

(Hazus outputs: industrial facility damage and loss including 

business interruption losses)
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

20

Vulnerability Rating as 

Defined by the Team (see 

step 3.3)—for example, High 

(H), Moderate (M), Low (L), or 

None (N)

Community Assets (see step 3.2)

Sea Level RiseFloo

d

Storm SurgeDroughtExtreme Heat

Description of Potential Impacts on Economic Activity

(see step 3.4)

Commercial Operations

List names and locations of affected areas.

To extent possible, describe types or percentage of commercial 

businesses affected and how they are likely to be affected, such as 

inability to open because of damage to the facility or inaccessibility 

to employees, suppliers, and customers; impacts to workers and 

customers; loss of inventory; or interruptions in supply chain. 

(Hazus outputs: commercial facility damage and loss, including 

business interruption losses)

Agricultural Operations

List names and locations of affected areas.

To extent possible, describe types or percentage of agricultural 

operations affected and how they are likely to be affected, such as 

damage to fields or equipment; lack of access; loss of inventory; 

and impacts to workers, suppliers, and customers. (Hazus outputs: 

agricultural facility damage and loss, including business 

interruption losses and crop loss)

Natural Resources

List names, descriptions, and locations of affected 

areas.

To extent possible, describe types of resources affected and how 

impacts to them might affect the local economy, such as loss of 

tourism or damage to harvestable natural resources such as fish.

Other

Describe. Describe.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy

21

3.2 Identify Community Assets at Risk 

To determine the community’s economic vulnerability to climate change, the team first needs to 

identify which assets are significant contributors to the local economy. On the sample assessment 

form in Table 1, this information would go in the “Community Assets” column. 

The team’s local knowledge and information gathered in previous steps can help them determine 

which asset categories to include on the assessment form. For example, priorities might include 

basic community operations that support all economic activity (e.g., infrastructure and utilities), 

as well as sectors that are particularly important to the community (e.g., large employers, tourist 

attractions, or natural assets). 

The community’s hazard mitigation plan, if it has one, should identify assets at risk. To make 

sure they are getting a complete picture of the community’s assets, the assessment team should

also try to contact key stakeholders and community representatives who are not on the team. The 

team could hold public discussions, solicit input online, or go door to door to make sure they 

reach key commercial property owners, business owners and operators, and others. 

Asset categories that are likely to apply to every community include: 

 Transportation

 Utilities and emergency response operations

 Industrial operations

 Commercial operations

 Agricultural operations

 Natural resources

The assessment team could include additional asset categories, as appropriate, that are important 

to their community’s local economy, such as: 

 Historic areas and assets

 Natural and cultural assets

 Specific business sectors

 Health and social services

 Residential areas

Below is guidance on the asset categories on the sample assessment form. 

Sub-step objective: Identify asset categories to examine and assets in each category that are 

critical to the local economy.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

22

Transportation 

 Transportation networks move residents, goods, services,

and commodities.

 Identify the most critical network components that support

the local economy, breaking the network down to individual

street segments, bridges, transit facilities, and bicycle and

pedestrian facilities, as appropriate.

 The level of detail the team applies would reflect the scale

at which the team is assessing—relatively small, specific

segments could be important for a small town or village,

whereas larger segments and areas could be appropriate

for a regional assessment.

Utilities and Emergency Response Operations 

 Reliable utilities are essential to a strong, functioning economy.

Interrupting their operations can have a dramatic impact on the

community’s economy, affecting both consumers and suppliers.

 Identify the most critical public and private utilities that

serve affected areas of the community, including electrical

system, sanitary sewer collection and treatment systems,

water supply, stormwater, natural gas, and

telecommunications.

 Whether a utility is publicly or privately owned will not

necessarily affect its risk, but its ownership is important for

the team to know when discussing potential actions to

improve resilience. When filling out the assessment form,

consult with local utilities if they do not have

representatives on the assessment team.

 Critical emergency response facilities and equipment could be

flooded or rendered inaccessible or inoperable during disasters.

 Work with local emergency operations officials to evaluate

potential changes to locations of emergency operation facilities

such as police, fire, and emergency medical services to ensure

that they will be operational and accessible during disasters.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

23

Industrial Operations 

 Industrial operations create jobs and inject money into the

community.

 Industrial operations might be important parts of local and

regional supply chains, providing essential goods and

services to other businesses. Understanding how one

facility affects other businesses will be important in

evaluating the local economy’s true vulnerability to climate

change.

 Key information to identify for each operation might include

name of the operation, types of goods and/or services it

manufactures and/or provides, and how many people it

employs.

 Get relevant information by working with the local chamber

of commerce, business association, business district, or

county or regional economic development organization.

Use resources such as the community land use map, local

tax records, and walking or windshield surveys (gathering

information by walking or driving around).

Commercial Operations 

 Commercial operations (e.g., retail, restaurants, and

professional offices) create jobs, pay taxes, and could be

important links in local and regional supply chains.

 Commercial assets might also contribute to unique

aspects of a local economy such as tourism or synergies

with other local businesses.

 Key information to identify for each commercial operation

might include the types of goods and/or services it

provides, its relationship to other local businesses, and

how many people it employs.

 To get relevant information, work with the local chamber

of commerce, business association, business district, or

county or regional economic development organization. Use

resources such as local tax records and walking or windshield

surveys.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

24

Agricultural Operations 

 Farms are directly affected by climate (operations often

choose locations based on temperature and precipitation).

 Change in the climate could dramatically affect operations

(e.g., too much rain could wash away soil or spoil crops,

while drought or extreme heat or cold could reduce the

quality and amount of the harvest).

 Key information to gather might include the climate

conditions that make the community a good location, what

each operation produces, and the operation’s relationship

to businesses inside and outside the community.

 Work with the individual operations’ managers and owners

and local agricultural extension staff to get the necessary

information.

Natural Resources 

 Streams, lakes, aquifers, and coastal waters support

agriculture, fishing, energy production, shipping and

navigation, manufacturing, and recreation.

 Climate-related impacts include erosion, flooding, increased

water pollution, warmer water temperatures, and ocean

acidification. Drought can reduce water supplies while

economic growth might be increasing demand.

 Green spaces, including wetlands, salt marshes, flood

plains, meadows, and woods, naturally filter and store

rainfall. Trees provide shade, reduce ambient air

temperatures, sequester carbon dioxide, and increase

property values and commercial activity.

 Climate change puts city tree canopies and local forests used

for production at more risk from fire, drought, and pest

infestation.

 Climate change can shift the range of where certain species

live, affecting local fishing, hunting, tourism, and agriculture.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

25

3.3 Define and Apply a Local Vulnerability Scale 

A vulnerability scale lets the team distill diverse factors for each asset into a representative 

vulnerability designation where possible. It is not necessary to spend a great deal of time refining 

this scale. The important thing is to have a consistent basis for distinguishing where climaterelated hazards pose the greatest risk to the local economy. 

The sample assessment form uses “high,” “moderate,” “low,” and “none” as a scale to help 

estimate and compare assets’ vulnerability to various climate impacts. The team could establish 

ranges for each level; for example, a low level of risk might be that 1 to 5 percent of the asset 

category could be affected by the climate hazard, a moderate level could be 5 to 20 percent, and 

a high level could be more than 20 percent. To bracket the ranges, the team could consider 

factors such as value of the assets, potential for collateral impact (i.e., dependence of other 

economic activities on those assets), or similar concerns. Ultimately, the team can use whatever 

scale it wants based on the community’s context and threats. 

Once the team has defined a scale, it can apply it to each identified asset for each climate 

change-related hazard. Some hazards (e.g., sea level rise, flood, and storm surge) affect only 

specific areas of the community, while others such as drought and extreme heat might affect the 

entire community. The team can rely on information and resources gathered during earlier steps 

of this process to determine which assets are vulnerable to which threats. Figure 10 shows an 

example of how a community might rate some of its assets. 

Sub-step objective: Determine the comparative vulnerability of each asset to each climate 

stressor.

An asset’s 

vulnerability 

Exposure 

to the 

threat 

Effect the 

threat 

would have 

on its 

operations 

Its ability 

to adapt to 

or protect 

against the 

threat 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

26

Figure 10: Sample rating of comparative vulnerability of assets based on each asset’s exposure to a threat, the 

effect the threat would have on the asset, and the asset’s ability to protect against the threat.

3.4 Assess Potential Positive and Negative Impacts on Economic Activity 

Once each asset has a vulnerability designation for each hazard, the team can describe the 

collective potential impacts of all threats for each asset in the “Description of Potential Impacts 

on Economic Activity” column of the assessment form. This step distills all previous information 

and findings into a clear connection between threat and economic impact for each asset and the 

community as a whole. Based on local conditions and the identified hazards from step 2, the 

team will determine which factors it will consider when evaluating economic impacts. 

Particularly if it has limited time and resources, the team might want to focus on vulnerabilities 

and potential economic impacts on critical local economic drivers. 

The team would explore how each category and/or individual asset affects the local economy. 

For example, a community with a manufacturing- and distribution-based economy might 

None Low Moderate High

 Asset: Business in flood

plain with HVAC on the

roof

 Exposed to floods

 Flood that damages

HVAC could shut down

business and require

expensive repairs

 Moved HVAC to roof to

protect against flooding

 Asset: Business in flood

plain with HVAC in

basement

 Exposed to floods

 Flood that damages

HVAC could shut down

business and require

expensive repairs

 Might be able to protect

with barriers

 Asset: Monument

that attracts tourists

 Exposed to drought

 No ill effects from

drought

 No need to protect

against drought

Comparing Assets’ Relative Vulnerability

Sub-step objective: Determine how potential climate change impacts could affect each 

asset’s economic effect on the community, both positively and negatively.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

27

consider how impacts to roads might affect supply chains, shipping, and other elements 

important to creating and moving goods. If a storm surge shuts down the local transit system and 

floods the main road to a factory, what might the local economic impacts be during the storm, 

immediately after it, and in the long term (Figure 11)? To find indirect impacts in particular, the 

team might need to conduct extensive interviews with local businesspeople, who might not be 

aware themselves of these potential effects. Including this information in the assessment form 

helps illustrate the interconnection of potential economic vulnerabilities among asset categories 

and can help communities explore solutions—in this case, perhaps having a public transit system 

that is less vulnerable to flooding could encourage more businesses to locate in the community 

because it offers more reliable transportation. 

Figure 11: Sample impacts to consider in assessing effects on economic activity. 

To get a complete picture of potential effects on the economy, the assessment team should try to 

identify both negative (Figure 12) and positive (Figure 13) impacts. Appendix D provides some 

sample questions for the common asset categories to help the team estimate the relative 

magnitude of potential negative and positive economic impacts. Engaging stakeholders who 

understand environmental justice issues, if they are not already on the team, can help identify 

impacts that disproportionately affect low-income, minority, and overburdened communities, as 

well as positive impacts that might be leveraged to create broader benefits. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

28

Figure 12: Sample negative impacts to consider. 

Figure 13: Sample positive impacts or potential opportunities to consider.

Potential positive impacts might include: 

Climate change impacts Businesses and residents Local businesses could 

might affect spending might need climate-resilient provide goods and services 

patterns, economic drivers, products and services such that might be in greater 

and consumer preferences in as drought- and salinity- demand after a natural 

ways that could create new resistant crops, water- disaster (e.g., building 

local business sectors or efficient technologies, storm- materials or landscaping that 

synergies. resistant building materials, might be needed to rebuild and renewable energy after a storm). For example, rainier weather manufacturing and 

or hotter days might make installation. Rezoning and infrastructure 

people want more indoor improvements that build 

activities. Businesses that Which of these new products resilience could help the 

depend on warm weather and services could the local community attract more could see longer seasons business community businesses. with milder autumns and provide? How might the local 

springs extending the government support 

summer season. businesses that want to 

experiment with climateresilient goods and services?

Potential negative impacts on: 

ALL ASSETS JOBS BUSINESSES 

Some assets might be at risk Problems might arise for Production capacity or 

of complete loss (i.e., inability commuting to work. efficiency in doing business 

to access or use the asset). might be reduced or disrupted. 

Work might take longer or 

What would this mean for cost more because outdoor Capital or operations and 

businesses, residents, workers have to work maintenance costs might 

workers, visitors, and the shorter hours in extreme increase. 

economy? heat. 

Demand for goods and 

NATURAL RESOURCES Which workers are more services might drop. 

likely to be affected by 

Climate impacts could harm work interruptions or Workers or jobs might be lost. 

natural flood protection, layoffs? 

ecosystem services, wildlife Climate change might lead to 

habitat, and tourist attractions. Which jobs might be changes in consumer 

disrupted temporarily? preferences, consumption 

How might these impacts Where might permanent patterns, and length of prime 

affect specific business layoffs occur? consumption periods for 

sectors? seasonal businesses. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy

29

NORTH KINGSTOWN EXAMPLE

Table 2 shows how the North Kingstown team assessed the likely impacts of 

climate change on the town’s local economic assets, including transportation, 

commercial and industrial operations, agriculture and fisheries operations, and 

natural resources. Holding separate meetings with each group of local experts to fill 

out the table made the most efficient use of their time, since members of each board 

have knowledge of different assets. Specifically, the Conservation Commission 

considered agricultural and natural resource assets, and the economic boards 

considered transportation infrastructure and commercial operations. The 

representative from Quonset Development Corporation considered industrial 

operations, and town planning staff participated in all meetings and assessed the 

vulnerability of assets not addressed by the other participants. 

In the meetings, it quickly became clear that the number of hazards 

needed to be expanded from those shown in the sample form in Table 1. 

In North Kingstown, participants evaluated the impacts from not only sea 

level rise, floods, storm surge, drought, and extreme heat, but also from 

wind damage, blizzards, an increase in pests and diseases, and ocean 

acidification. Likely impacts were ranked as “high,” “moderate,” or 

“low,” with discussion of the location of impacts (some of which would 

be felt townwide, while others would be felt only in particular areas along 

the coast). Some opportunities for economic development associated with 

climate change were discussed, but the focus was on impacts. Completing 

the table provided the foundation for a discussion of which hazards and 

opportunities the town was most interested in addressing. (Because of 

space constraints, not all of the impacts or community assets that the team 

assessed are shown in Table 2.) 

Figure 14: Wickford Village in North Kingstown.

Figure 15: Lobster traps at Wickford Harbor.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

30

Table 2: Sample of the North Kingstown team’s preliminary evaluation of key community assets 

Vulnerability Rating: High (H), Moderate (M), Low (L)

Community assets

Flooding (inland)Sea level riseStorm surgeWind damageBlizzardDroughtTemperature changes

Description of potential impacts on economy

Transportation

Roads L L L L M

Bridges L L L L M

Bicycle path L M M L L

Passenger rail L L L L M

Freight rail M L M L M L/M

Freight rail line into Quonset susceptible to flooding. High 

temperatures can affect rail.

Bus service M M M L H

Airport (on Quonset) L M M M L L L

Airport run by Rhode Island Airport Corporation, which retrofitted new 

terminal and hanger with a 3’ wall to reduce flooding potential.

Industrial Operations (by area)

Quonset and Davisville 

waterfront L H H L/M L M L

Quonset has its own water system, and a couple of industrial 

operations with high water use could be affected by a drought. 

Potential for additional business at Quonset if other ports shut down 

by storms (e.g., Port of Halifax closed in March 2015, and 6 ships 

were diverted to Quonset). Sea level rise may provide temporary 

opportunity if port can accept larger ships with deeper drafts.

Commercial Operations (by area)

Wickford Village M/H H H H H

At the confluence of inland and coastal flooding. Roads into and out of 

the village very vulnerable to sea level rise, storm surge, and flooding. 

Water supply restrictions might affect restaurants.

Davisville L L L M M

May be opportunities to reduce stormwater with porous paving in 

parking lots.

Saunderstown L L L H M

Post Road south of 403 M L L/M H/M M Flooding in big storms since the road doesn’t drain well.

Wickford Junction L L L M M
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

31

Vulnerability Rating: High (H), Moderate (M), Low (L)

Community assets

Flooding (inland)Sea level riseStorm surgeWind damageBlizzardDroughtTemperature changes

Description of potential impacts on economy

Agriculture and Fisheries Operations

All irrigation water is from ground water wells and farm ponds. 

Restrictions on water use every summer. Need to do more recharge 

through green infrastructure. Excessive or heavy rain can prevent 

planting in spring or lead to crop failure. May be opportunities in 

growing new, more heat-tolerant crops (e.g., plums) or multiple crops 

in a single growing season (e.g., hay).

Annual crops (e.g., 

vegetables) H H H

Livestock/hobby H M L M M

Orchards H M L M M H H

Turf farms H M L M M H

Established turf can probably withstand some flooding, but prolonged 

drought is a threat.

Fisheries L L H H L L H

Oysters and mussels are grown locally. Few fishing boats operate out 

of Wickford Harbor. Black sea bass and tautog are migrating north as 

the ocean warms—may be opportunity to harvest new species.

Natural Resources

Parks/golf courses M/H

Coastal 

ones: H

Coastal 

ones: H M L H

Wilson Park most prized recreational asset. A few golf courses. Tickborne diseases are public health threat.

Beaches L H

Coastal 

one: H L L

Wickford Harbor n/a H H L L

Wetlands and 

watercourses H

Coastal 

ones: H

Coastal 

ones: H L L H

The Narrow River is ecologically important and vulnerable to storm 

surge.

Protected open 

space/trails L

Coastal 

ones: H

Coastal 

ones: H M L

State owns land on Gilbert Stuart Road (next to Carr Pond/Gilbert 

Stuart Pond) and there is a state park at Rome Point. Tick-borne 

diseases are public health threat.

Ground water L L H L L H

Forests L L M M L

Largest area is Cocumscussoc State Park. Tick-borne diseases are 

public health threat.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy

32

Step 4: Analyze Overall Economic Implications for the Community 

To gain a comprehensive understanding of climate-related economic vulnerability and 

opportunity, the team should analyze each asset not only individually but also as a component of 

an interconnected economy. The goal of this step is to develop a comprehensive picture of the 

local economic risks and opportunities associated with climate change. 

Damage to transportation or utility assets, for example, could have far-reaching impacts on all 

sectors of the economy, including businesses, homes, and tourist attractions. Exploring these 

connections provides a picture of the potential communitywide economic impacts, positive and 

negative, of climate change. 

The team will likely find it useful to gather public and stakeholder input—beyond what it has 

already done—to make sure it is finding the relevant connections and considering the 

implications for all parts of the community. The information gathered in prior steps, along with 

local knowledge, can help the team make connections between various asset categories, climaterelated risks, and the local economy. To make this task more manageable, the team could analyze 

economic implications from the business perspective, real estate and residential demographics, 

and public-sector support.

Analyze business perspective and resources 

 Business stability: How will the community’s major economic drivers (i.e., core

businesses and business sectors) likely fare if no mitigation or adaptation measures are

taken? For example, in the short term, would businesses be able to survive an event like

Hurricane Sandy, or would that kind of severe, one-time event drive them out of

business? Consider how strong businesses or sectors might be over the long term (e.g., if

the community’s economy relies on shellfish, which are getting scarcer because of ocean

acidification and shifting habitat, what will happen to the local economy over time?).

Which businesses will need the most help to recover from short-term impacts and prepare

for long-term changes?

 Finance (public and private): How might climate change and its impact on the

community affect public and private financing sources that have traditionally supported

development? How might climate change impacts affect the nature and amount of

financing that industries or businesses need? Does the community rely on financing

sources that might experience financial stress due to climate change? Would any of the

community’s existing financing sources be reluctant to continue investing in high-hazard

areas? What kind of public financing would be available if a major natural disaster (e.g.,

flood, storm, or wildfire) occurred? Is public financing available for upgrades to

individual businesses or public infrastructure to make them more resilient? Could the

community’s current financial resources support efforts to build community-level

resilience over time?
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

33

 Insurance cost and availability: How do residents and business owners perceive the 

burden of insurance cost (e.g., high or low) for the relevant climatic factors (e.g., fire, 

flood, or storm damage)? Is the cost of insurance likely to increase in the community due 

to climate change? Will increasing insurance rates significantly raise the cost of doing 

business? Could the public sector help to decrease or maintain insurance rates (e.g.,

through the National Flood Insurance Program Community Rating System)? Is it possible 

that insurance will no longer be available for some climate hazards, and if so, what would 

be the consequences? 

 Competitive advantage: What competitive advantage does the community already enjoy 

(e.g., a distinctive character or a location close to major transportation routes), and how 

might the potential economic impacts, negative or positive, affect that advantage? Is the 

community already well positioned to encourage climate-resilient businesses? Could the 

community market itself as better-prepared for climate change and thus safer for longterm investment? Would businesses that offer climate-resilient products or services or 

that meet changing consumer demands be more competitive? Would the gains from 

climate-resilient offerings be enough to offset expected economic losses? 

Analyze real estate and residential demographics 

 Residential areas and socioeconomic conditions: Threats to residential areas can have 

profound impacts on overall economic health because a community without a healthy 

residential population will not support a functioning economy. What overall 

repercussions, such as reduced services, amenities, or tax revenue, might projected 

climate change impacts bring? Might those repercussions drive residents and businesses 

to leave the community? On the other hand, might climate change create significant 

economic opportunities (and if so, how)? What are the community’s overall population

demographics, and which populations are most vulnerable to climate change impacts 

because of their location, income level, age, health, or other factors? Where do 

employees of various sectors live, and how do they commute to and from work? What 

might be the economic impacts of a severe weather event that mainly affects a residential 

area? For example, if a flood hits a low-lying residential neighborhood where many local 

workers live, the workers might not be able to get to work, which could affect businesses. 

 Real estate: What types of residences does the community have (e.g., single-family 

homes, multifamily buildings, and vacation rental or second homes)? If vacation rental or 

second-home properties are in particularly vulnerable areas or depend on the weather 

(e.g., snow for skiing or pleasant weather for beaches), how might that affect the 

community’s tourism and real estate market? Are particular parcels or neighborhoods at 

much higher risk due to climate change? Which businesses and industries rely on them? 

Are there less risky or problematic locations that would be viable for those businesses or 

industries? If relocation becomes necessary, would an individual business-by-business 

approach work, or would the community need a comprehensive strategy to relocate? 

Could changes to building codes make new development less risky for businesses and
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

34

industry? How much of a financial burden might these changes be for developers and

buyers? What kinds of upgrades might be required to make existing development less 

risky or to decrease the impact of climate change? Are rising maintenance costs as a 

result of climate change going to increase the cost of development? Does vulnerable real 

estate play a major role in generating public revenue? 

Analyze public-sector support and private-sector leadership 

 Postdisaster rebuilding: If the community has recently experienced a disaster, is

rebuilding occurring with an awareness of current and future climate-related hazards?

Are there opportunities to rebuild in a more resilient way than previously? Are local or

regional businesses supporting the rebuilding? Have major contracts for rebuilding gone

to local businesses?

 Business and economic development support: What actors and systems support

businesses currently, and how might those actors or systems change under the identified

climate change impacts? Have leaders in industries that could help advance resilience in

economic development, either through products, services, or leadership, recognized those

opportunities? In the case of a natural hazard, are the public and private sectors aware of

who can assist with emergency management, response, and rebuilding? In the public

sector, are there major economic development priorities that might compete with

increasing resilience? Are there ways in which those priorities and resilience could

complement each other?

 Municipal finance: How might climate change impacts influence the community’s

primary sources of municipal revenue (e.g., real estate tax, sales tax, or other source)?

How might climate change impacts affect real estate tax revenue (e.g., consider the

number and value of parcels and structures that are especially vulnerable to hazards)?

How might extreme events, more frequent events, or permanent changes such as sea level

rise affect the value of parcels and structures, including estimates of the costs of damages

and adaptive strategies such as elevating, relocating, or abandoning structures? If the

municipality receives sales or hotel taxes, how might climate change affect those revenue

streams? How have prior extreme weather events affected those sources of revenue? How

vulnerable are the industries and individual businesses that generate significant

percentages of those revenues, and how might climate change affect their business in the

long term (e.g., is a ski resort likely to lose significant business because of a shorter snow

season, or could it become a year-round business by adding warm-weather activities)?

Are municipal assets likely to require significant capital investment to become resilient or

adapt to climate impacts (e.g., relocating, elevating, or replacing municipal buildings and

infrastructure)? How are municipal operating costs likely to change as a result of climate

change (e.g., more frequent replacement or repair of stormwater and transportation

infrastructure, additional emergency response costs)?
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

35

Step 5: Explore Options to Enhance Resilience and Pursue 

Opportunities 

The final step of the framework is to help the community explore options for improving its 

resilience based on the results of the assessment. Actions include: 

5.1 Raise public awareness and garner support. 

5.2 Identify actions to enhance economic resilience and pursue opportunities.

5.1 Raise Public Awareness and Garner Support 

The results of the assessment, including the climate projections and implications, are key 

messages to convey to stakeholders and the public. Public outreach and buy-in will be critical, as 

the community will ultimately be responsible for implementing or approving funding for public 

actions to enhance economic resilience. Stakeholder and community engagement conducted 

during the assessment phases can suggest the values and priorities that frame community 

perspectives on climate change and economic prosperity. These values and priorities will play a 

major role in continuing to build public awareness after the assessment is complete. 

To communicate effectively, the team should create a consistent message emphasizing 

opportunities to improve resilience. The team should support an ongoing exchange of 

information and feedback between the team, key stakeholders, and the public about the 

assessment and subsequent strategies.

 Create a consistent, positive message: Messages that steer away from “doom and

gloom” and emphasize opportunities, such as “building a resilient economy,” are

generally more effective. The team can share its assessment of what could help maintain

business stability, attract customers and investments, and improve the community’s

reputation for supporting a healthy, climate-resilient economy. If the community has

recently suffered a severe weather event, referencing this event as a sign of a long-term

trend, not a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence, can help stakeholders make the connection

between climate and their economic well-being. Memories of a severe weather event

could trigger strong emotional responses from the community, so the team will want to

be sensitive to people’s reactions.

While it can be important to show the negative consequences of inaction, emphasizing

the multiple benefits of taking action can galvanize the community to take advantage of

opportunities. Any connection the team can make between the community’s shared

values, such as fiscal prudence or natural resource protection, and potential solutions can

help build support.

Sub-step objective: Present the assessment results to the broader community and solicit 

ongoing input as a foundation for taking action to become more economically resilient.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

36

 Inform and get input from the community: To inform the broader community and

begin developing ideas for actions to enhance resilience and pursue opportunities, the

team will need to reach out to key stakeholders and the public. The team can build on

engagement and communication that happened in previous steps of the assessment to

explore ideas for putting the assessment results to use. The team could host an interactive

public event on climate change and economic resilience to educate the community and

explore solutions and opportunities. Partnering with neighborhood groups can be an

effective way to bring new faces into a community engagement event.

Key stakeholders to reach include individuals or groups who are affected by projected

climate impacts, those who have influence or power over implementing policy changes,

and those who contribute to the community’s economic development vision (e.g.,

chamber of commerce, trade organizations, or prominent firms). Outreach could be

incorporated into existing community forums and activities, or the assessment team could

hold strategic small group or one-on-one meetings. For example, the team could meet

with businesses that led or helped recovery after past severe events to share the

assessment findings, discuss their experiences, and solicit their ideas about next steps for

the public and private sectors. The team could also ask the stakeholders and businesses

that returned after the severe event if they would consider using their experience to

mentor other businesses. The team might also want to reach out to neighboring

jurisdictions and other governmental entities in the region that might be interested in the

assessment results.

5.2 Identify Actions to Enhance Economic Resilience and Pursue Opportunities 

The assessment results and the public engagement should help start discussions, publicly and 

privately, about how the community and individual properties and businesses can become more 

resilient. These discussions can also explore how to take advantage of potential opportunities and 

position the community and its businesses to thrive even as the climate changes. 

The assessment results will help the community determine where to focus its economic resilience 

efforts and choose actions to improve resilience and bring other benefits. For example, if the 

community’s major economic assets are most at risk from sea level rise, the community might 

want to explore policy options that reduce businesses’ exposure to storm surges, encourage new 

and expanding businesses to locate away from the coast, create alternatives for transportation 

modes and routes that are likely to be disrupted by a storm surge, and preserve or create natural 

areas that can absorb flooding. 

Sub-step objective: Develop public- and private-sector actions that can help the community 

make its economy more resilient to climate-related threats and help businesses take 

advantage of climate-related opportunities.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

37

To help communities start thinking about potential actions to pursue, this section includes several 

policies for the public and private sectors that can bring multiple benefits in addition to building 

resilience (summarized in Table 3). 

Table 3: List of public- and private-sector policies and actions 

A. Public-Sector Actions

1. Convene partners to build capacity and share effective practices.

 Convene businesses involved in recovery efforts in past natural disasters to share their experience.

Discuss a potential business-to-business mentoring program on resilience.

 Encourage networking opportunities for businesses in the community and the region interested in

enhancing resilience.

 Explore opportunities for local and regional collaboration on resilience with regional governmental

entities, chambers of commerce, or regional industry associations.

 Work with business and economic development groups poised to take advantage of new resiliencerelated market opportunities to find out how the local government could help.

 Convene local businesses to help identify the town’s assets that could become the basis for economic

growth, and consider integrating these assets into the economic development plan.

2. Incorporate projected climate impacts into policies and regulations, such as land use, hazard mitigation,

and economic development plans and related ordinances such as building and zoning codes.

 Update the local comprehensive plan to identify areas that are—or are projected to become—more

vulnerable to climate change impacts, and protect those areas.

 To implement the updated comprehensive plan, adopt zoning that promotes the safety and longevity of

development.

 Consider incentives to encourage development in more desirable locations.

 Incorporate measures into hazard mitigation and other plans to rebuild in stronger and more resilient

ways should a disaster occur.

 Use economic development and land use planning to support economic diversification.

 Use economic development planning and funding to support resilience innovation in the area’s most

competitive sectors.

 Create (before a disaster) a postdisaster redevelopment plan that includes a section on economic

redevelopment.

3. Strengthen the resilience of infrastructure on which businesses rely (e.g., stormwater, wastewater,

drinking water, utilities, and transportation).

 Incorporate backup electricity generation and resilience in the grid—for example, through on-site

renewable energy or a micro-grid.

 Work with utility providers to improve resilience of critical systems.

 Implement green infrastructure techniques, which use soils, vegetation, and natural processes to

reduce polluted stormwater, to reduce flooding and protect water quality.

 Develop transportation networks with multimodal options that improve everyday transportation but

also can operate in emergencies.

 Relocate or demolish at-risk municipal facilities that cannot be made resilient, and consider establishing

an acquisition or buyout plan for at-risk commercial properties.

4. Help businesses plan and invest for climate hazards and opportunities.

 Develop financing and technical assistance programs to help businesses improve the resilience of their

infrastructure and operations.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

38

 Incorporate into the community’s marketing to business the public-sector’s commitments to resilience

and private-sector leaders who are preparing for climate change.

 Promote development patterns that make it easier for businesses to be flexible and experiment with

new ideas.

B. Private-Sector Actions

1. Improve resilience.

 Build human resources capacity to manage climate hazards, including by sharing the assessment results

with firm leadership, managers, and employees; training staff in emergency response; and assigning

climate hazard management to a specific employee.

 Plan for climate change-related vulnerabilities and opportunities by incorporating relevant findings

from the assessment into strategic planning, creating or updating a continuity-of-operations plan,

identifying where the firm needs to enhance its resilience, incorporating resilience into strategic

planning and values statements, and sharing assessment findings with business groups.

 Make structural investments such as floodproofing measures and green infrastructure practices, and

consider where it makes sense to locate or expand a business.

 Make operational investments, such as in water- and energy-efficient equipment and practices.

2. Pursue opportunities to move into climate-related and/or climate-resilient markets.

 Conduct formal market research that considers growth projections, and identify areas in which the firm

could compete in this market.

 Identify regional innovation hubs working on vulnerabilities in your industry, and explore opportunities

to partner or pilot technologies or practices.

 Build relationships with firms doing complementary work in climate-related markets.

 Build relationships with institutions that provide workforce training.

 For tourism-related businesses, consider what amenities might make it possible to sustain—or

change—business given anticipated changes in weather patterns.

 Explore opportunities to develop onsite renewable energy generation and energy- and water-efficiency

technologies, and train workers to install and maintain them.

A. Public-Sector Actions 

Public-sector actions could include convening partners, changing regulations or policies, 

strengthening infrastructure, and helping businesses plan and invest for climate hazards and 

opportunities. 

1. Convene partners to build capacity and share effective practices.

 Convene businesses that have helped or led recovery efforts in past natural disasters to

share findings of the team’s assessment, discuss their experiences, and solicit

recommendations about next steps for the public and private sectors. Discuss the

potential for establishing a business-to-business mentoring program on resilience. The

Louisiana Disaster Recovery Unit’s Big Business–Small Business Emergency

Management Mentorship Program offers resources that might be useful, including a

sample mentor-protégé partnership agreement and a mentorship program guide.7

7

 NIMSAT Institute. “Big Business–Small Business Emergency Management Mentorship Program.”

www.disasterb2bmentor.org/BBSB/Home.aspx. Accessed Nov. 4, 2015. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

39

 Encourage networking opportunities for businesses in the community and the region

interested in enhancing resilience. For example, develop a listserv or host regular

workshops for area businesses that wish to integrate resilience into business practices.

Reach out to existing business networks such as industry groups and chambers of

commerce to help convene businesses. Through these channels, seek to understand the

ongoing needs and challenges of businesses in the community with regard to climate

impacts and climate-related opportunities.

 Explore opportunities for local and regional collaboration on resilience. The regional

council of governments or metropolitan planning organization could help convene

municipalities. Chambers of commerce or regional industry associations could help bring

together private-sector entities.

EXAMPLE

Clinton County, Ohio, suffered an economic disaster rather than a natural one when its major 

employer shut down. County leaders worked with the state to create a task force made up of 

state, local, business, labor, educational, and other representatives. The task force worked with 

Energize Clinton County, a nonprofit created by the regional planning commission, to hold 

public meetings about the county’s economic future. The resulting strategy focused on 

supporting and diversifying local businesses, attracting and retaining young people, and 

encouraging renewable energy and energy efficiency, among other things. Energize Clinton 

County worked with the University of Cincinnati’s planning school to help villages in the 

county develop their first-ever comprehensive plans.8 This model of regional collaboration 

could apply to economic resilience to climate change as well. Developing strategies to diversify 

the economy, create more opportunities, and prepare for climate change can help communities 

and regions avoid major disruptions instead of waiting until they occur and responding to them.

 Work with business and economic development groups that are poised to take advantage

of new market opportunities related to resilience to find out how the local government

could assist them—for example, by helping to identify commercial spaces, train or recruit

workers, or streamline permitting.

 Convene local businesses to help identify the town’s particular assets that could become

the basis for economic growth and potential changes (e.g., seasonal, annual, long-term),

and consider integrating these assets into the local economic development plan.9 The

economic development plan could take into account projected climate changes and how

they might affect local assets. For example, if the town relies on tourism based on nearby

8 Schock, Christian, et al. “Growing Forward in Response to an Economic Disaster.” Economic Development 

Journal. International Economic Development Council. Winter 2014. 13, No. 1. energizecc.com/wpcontent/uploads/2014/03/EDJ_Winter14_final.pdf. 

9

 For examples of how towns have used their existing assets to strengthen their economies, see: EPA. How Small 

Towns and Cities Can Use Local Assets to Rebuild Their Economies. 2015. www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/how-smalltowns-and-cities-can-use-local-assets-rebuild-their-economies. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

40

parks, rivers, and other natural resources, climatic changes might cause more floods, 

make outdoor activities less appealing in hotter temperatures, or increase the chances of 

wildfires. The town might need to think about how to protect those local assets or shift its 

economy to less climate-dependent assets. 

 Convene stakeholders experienced in leveraging resources across different levels of

government, building communities’ capacity to handle complex challenges, and working

with vulnerable communities. These stakeholders might not necessarily be involved in

either economic development or resilience but might have experience in other fields that

can translate into building economic resilience.

2. Incorporate projected climate impacts into policies and regulations, such as land use,

hazard mitigation, and economic development plans and related ordinances such as building

and zoning codes.

 Update the local comprehensive plan to identify areas that currently are—or are projected

to become—more vulnerable to climate change impacts such as flooding, and target those

areas for additional protection. The local hazard mitigation plan can be helpful if it takes

into account climate change projections. Rhode Island requires local comprehensive

plans to have a chapter dedicated to hazard mitigation10 and provides guidance for

municipalities on planning for climate change.11 Identify areas where growth should be

encouraged—places that are in or well-connected to already-developed areas and that are

less vulnerable to flooding and other hazards—and consider ways to encourage it.

Encouraging development and redevelopment in these areas not only keeps people and

property safe, it also takes development pressure off of undeveloped land that can protect

the community from hazards such as flooding and avoids costly new infrastructure and

utility extensions. Incorporate this information into the economic development plan as

well to determine where economic growth should be encouraged—for example, centrally

located, walkable districts.

 To implement the updated comprehensive plan, adopt zoning that promotes the safety

and longevity of development. Zoning strategies can make the cost of development in

hazardous areas more reflective of the cost of mitigating flood hazard risks, encourage

development in appropriate locations, discourage it in more vulnerable areas, or establish

performance standards to reduce risks.12 For example:

10 Rhode Island Comprehensive Planning and Land Use Act. §45-22.2-6 Required content of a comprehensive plan. 

Amended 2011. webserver.rilin.state.ri.us/Statutes/TITLE45/45-22.2/45-22.2-6.HTM. 

11 The Rhode Island Comprehensive Planning Standards Guidance Handbook Series: Guidance Handbook #12: 

Planning for Natural Hazards & Climate Change. Approved by the Rhode Island State Planning Council Jan. 14, 

2016. www.planning.ri.gov/statewideplanning/compplanning/handbook.php. 

12 For more information on zoning strategies to encourage development in less-vulnerable places and discourage or 

protect it in more-vulnerable places, including the strategies described here and others, see: 

 EPA. Using Smart Growth Strategies to Create More Resilient Communities in the Washington, D.C., Region. 

2013. www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/using-smart-growth-strategies-create-more-resilient-communities-washington-dc-region. 

EPA. Planning for Flood Recovery and Long-Term Resilience in Vermont: Smart Growth Approaches for DisasterResilient Communities. 2014. www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/planning-flood-recovery-and-long-term-resilience-vermont.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

41

o Infill and mixed-use zoning: Encourage growth in already-developed locations that

are less vulnerable to natural hazards, and consider incentives such as streamlined

development approvals for infill development. Where it is not possible to encourage

growth in or connected to already-developed areas, communities can build new

mixed-use centers compactly, which reduces the cost of new infrastructure and makes

it easier for people to walk or bike to destinations.

o Flood plain and flood way regulations:

Implement flood plain development limits

that exceed FEMA requirements, essentially

prohibiting new development in flood plains

or flood ways unless a variance is granted.

For example, Northampton, Massachusetts,

changed its regulated flood plain boundaries

from FEMA’s 100-year flood plain to the

500-year flood plain as a proxy for climate

change.13 Some local governments have a

stream buffer zoning ordinance in addition

to flood plain and flood way regulations.

For example, Chapel Hill, North Carolina,

requires a 150-foot vegetated stream buffer

on each side of perennial streams and 50

feet on each side of intermittent streams.

o Agricultural or open space zoning: In the comprehensive plan, identify active

farmland and valuable open space areas that should be preserved, then create zoning

districts delineating these areas. Communities can work with farmers to reduce flood

risk in the community by buying conservation easements from willing sellers or

providing incentives for farmers to implement predisaster mitigation measures.

o Transfer of development rights program: Some communities, such as Montgomery

County, Maryland, require agricultural or open space zoning to be linked to areas

designated for higher-intensity development through a transfer of development rights

program. In this program, developers in the growth area buy development rights or

credits from the agricultural areas.

o Conservation design: A conservation design ordinance requires new development to

protect 40 percent or more of the tract’s buildable land in intact open space, including

sensitive natural areas. A few local governments require conservation design in

sensitive areas such as drinking water supply watersheds or agricultural districts.

Where development is concentrated in another part of the site, it should be well

linked internally and to adjacent development.

13 City of Northampton, MA. “Multi-Hazard Mitigation and Climate Adaptation.”

www.northamptonma.gov/1415/Hazard-Mitigation. Accessed Feb. 2, 2016. 

Figure 16: Flood Resilience Checklist

EPA’s Flood Resilience Checklist

(www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/floodresilience-checklist) can help communities 

identify ways to improve their resilience to

floods by assessing policies and regulations 

such as the comprehensive plan, hazard 

mitigation plan, land use codes, and nonregulatory programs. It includes overall 

strategies to improve flood resilience as 

well as specific strategies to conserve land 

and discourage development in river 

corridors; protect people, businesses, and 

facilities in vulnerable settlements; direct 

development to safer areas; and 

implement and coordinate stormwater 

management practices throughout the 

watershed.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

42

The Georgetown Climate Center developed a model zoning ordinance for sea level rise 

that could be used for shorelines, river corridors, or any climate hazard area.14 The 

ordinance, tested in communities in Connecticut and Maryland, “extends the boundaries 

of the areas subject to flood plain regulations to protect development that will become 

increasingly vulnerable to impacts as sea level rise drives flooding further inland.” It

includes two districts: 

o Conservation zone: This zone, designed to gradually relocate development out of

highly vulnerable areas and protect natural resources, could allow only low-intensity

or low-density uses such as agriculture or recreation, keep buildings away from the

water with larger setbacks, limit structures’ size to let them be more easily relocated,

and prohibit rebuilding storm-damaged structures in highly vulnerable areas or

structures that have been repeatedly damaged.

o Accommodation zone: This zone, designed to allow continued development while

requiring structures to be more resilient to floods, could downzone permitted uses to

limit development of critical facilities or require more intense uses to receive a

special use permit, increase setbacks to account for erosion or create tiered setbacks

based on the structure’s size, require structures to be elevated to account for projected

sea level rise, or limit structures’ size or height.

 Consider incentives to encourage development in more desirable locations—places that

are both less vulnerable to climate-related impacts and well-connected to existing

development, infrastructure, and transportation options. Incentives can be financial, such

as tax credits for protecting natural resources, or procedural, such as height or floor area

bonuses for designs that are more resilient to hazards.

 Incorporate measures into hazard mitigation and other plans to rebuild in stronger and

more resilient ways should a disaster occur. Identifying and assessing hazards as they

relate to infrastructure, capital improvement, and/or transportation improvement plans

lets a community prioritize projects and pursue funding from state and federal sources.

Communities that upgrade local plans are also in a better position to request postdisaster

assistance when the next disaster occurs because they already have projects identified and

know where and how to direct rebuilding.

Communities can align their capital improvement plans with hazard mitigation plans to

identify infrastructure and critical facility vulnerabilities or deficiencies and plan for needed

improvements. They can inventory infrastructure and facilities and document how well the

infrastructure can handle known and projected hazards (e.g., culvert capacity relative to 500-

year stormwater flows). Incorporating hazard information into long-term capital

improvement planning can help prioritize projects such as upgrading roads and utilities in

safer development areas; improving stormwater infrastructure; restoring streams and habitat;

14 Grannis, Jessica. Zoning for Sea-Level Rise: A Model Sea-Level Rise Ordinance and Case Study of 

Implementation Barriers in Maryland. Executive Summary. Georgetown Climate Center. 2012. 

www.georgetownclimate.org/zoning-for-sea-level-rise. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

43

elevating roads to protect infrastructure and evacuation routes; upgrading culverts and 

bridges to accommodate anticipated 500-year flood levels (where cost-effective, and 100-

year flood levels at a minimum); and elevating, relocating, or floodproofing critical facilities. 

EXAMPLES

Oregon promotes integration of diverse planning resources with hazard mitigation. Statewide 

planning goals pass along safety and resilience requirements and/or suggestions to each 

municipality on a range of topics, including requiring inventories of hazard risk areas in 

comprehensive plans; adopting land use plans that reduce vulnerabilities to hazards; updating

building codes with requirements related to earthquake, wind, wildfire, and flood hazards; 

requiring new critical facilities to undergo hazard-specific site analysis; and encouraging 

overlay zoning and transfer of development rights to restrict unsafe development.

15

After a severe tornado in 2007 destroyed 

more than 90 percent of its buildings, 

Greensburg, Kansas, committed to rebuilding 

a green, resilient community. As of 2015, it 

has the most LEED buildings per capita of 

any place in the country, all of the electricity 

used in the city comes from wind energy, and 

green stormwater management practices 

collect rainwater for irrigation and other 

uses.16 The city updated and integrated hazard 

mitigation into its local planning and building 

requirements. It included requirements for 

safer, more sustainable development practices, such as required burying of power lines, 

required backup generators for critical facilities, an updated building code to reduce wind 

damage, and building safe rooms using FEMA guidelines.

 Use economic development and land use planning to support diversification, particularly

in communities that rely heavily on a single, climate-vulnerable industry. Ensure that

plans and codes allow economic growth in new directions while supporting the local

economy’s traditional base. For example, codes could allow a mix of uses in zoning

districts to encourage home-based businesses and eliminate any minimum size

requirements for commercial properties to help entrepreneurs find small, inexpensive

spaces to start a business. Economic development plans can explore how to diversify the

economy, taking into account how climate change projections might affect current and

prospective local industries.

15 FEMA. Integrating Hazard Mitigation Into Local Planning: Case Studies and Tools for Community Officials. 

2013. http://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/31372. 

16 Greensburg, Kansas. “5 Ways We Put the ‘Green’ in Greensburg.” www.greensburgks.org/sustainability/how-weput-the-green-in-greensburg. Accessed Nov. 10, 2015. FEMA/Steve Zumwalt

Figure 17: Greensburg rebuilt after the tornado with 

an emphasis on green building, renewable energy, 

and resilience to future disasters. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

44

 Use economic development planning and funding to support resilience innovation in the

area’s most competitive sectors. Local governments can encourage business incubators

that explore resilience-related technologies by offering technical and financial assistance

or helping to find a location for an incubator. Not only do new businesses generally

benefit the local economy, but the products and services developed by the incubated

companies can help a community become safer and more resilient.

17 Bethesda Green. “Join the Bethesda Green Incubator.” bethesdagreen.org/index.php/join-the-bethesda-greenincubator. Accessed Nov. 17, 2015. 

18 NYCEDC. “RISE: NYC.” rise-nyc.com. Accessed Nov. 17, 2015. 

19 NYCEDC. “Finalists: Bright Power.” rise-nyc.com/finalists/bright-power. Accessed Nov. 17, 2015. 

EXAMPLES

The Bethesda Green Incubator was started in 2009 by Bethesda Green, a public-private 

partnership in Bethesda, Maryland, working to provide sustainable solutions to improve the 

economy, environmental stewardship, and overall quality of life. The incubator provides 

financial and technical assistance to startup businesses that provide innovative, sustainable 

products and services. It offers office space; legal, accounting, and marketing assistance; access 

to funding, mentoring, and collaboration opportunities; and other financial and operating 

benefits. The businesses supported by Bethesda Green work in fields including renewable 

energy, energy conservation, sustainable agriculture, and environmental science.17

Figure 18: Rendering of the Newport TechWorks 

Innovation Center.

The New York City Economic Development Corporation’s Resiliency Innovations for a 

Stronger Economy was a competition in early 2014 for ideas and projects that would help 

businesses in the city become more resilient in the wake of Superstorm Sandy. Using $30 

million in funding from the Community Development Block Grant–Disaster Recovery (CDBGDR) Program, the city will install winning technologies at small businesses throughout the 

city.18 For example, one of the winning projects, Bright Power’s Resilient Power Hub, 

integrates solar power, battery storage, and cogeneration to reduce energy costs and provide 

backup power in an emergency.19

Newport, Rhode Island, working with the 

Newport County Chamber of Commerce and 

the Economic Development Foundation of 

Rhode Island, received a grant from the U.S. 

Department of Commerce to convert a cityowned, vacant school into a technology 

business incubator (Figure 18). Called the 

Newport TechWorks Innovation Center, it is 

Northeast Collaborative Architects
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

45

 Create (before a disaster) a postdisaster redevelopment plan that includes a section on

economic redevelopment.22 Engaging business groups and individual business owners in

developing the plan helps make sure that it meets their needs and gives them more of a

connection to the community, but also reassures them that the community is preparing for

disasters and is committed to helping businesses stay.

3. Strengthen the resilience of infrastructure on which businesses rely (e.g., stormwater,

wastewater, drinking water, telecommunications, utilities, and transportation). Reducing

climate change impacts to communities and businesses might require investing in

infrastructure and services, but some actions have no additional cost beyond business as

usual. Many can even save the local government, businesses, and residents money over the

long term and benefit the community every day as well as in emergencies. Upgrading and

improving transportation, water, and energy infrastructure to better withstand climate-related

20 Flynn, Sean. “$1.7M Grant Will Allow City to Move Ahead With Business Incubator Project.” Newport Daily 

News. Sep. 22, 2014. 

21 Engage Newport. “Technology Business Incubator and Accelerator.” engagenewport.com/projects/newporttechworks. Accessed Nov. 24, 2015. 

22 Florida Department of Community Affairs and Florida Division of Emergency Management. Post-Disaster 

Redevelopment Planning: A Guide for Florida Communities. 2010. www.floridajobs.org/docs/default-source/2015-

community-development/community-planning/pdr/pdrpguide.pdf?sfvrsn=2. 

23 Hollywood, Florida. “Open for Business Program.” www.hollywoodfl.org/index.aspx?NID=529. Accessed Sep. 3, 

2015.

expected to be operational in late fall 2016. Startup businesses in this incubator are expected to 

include climate change-related companies.20,21

EXAMPLES

The postdisaster redevelopment plan can include incentives and assistance for businesses. For 

example, Hollywood, Florida’s Open for Business Program gives businesses free marketing 

after a disaster, both to drive business to the company and to let people know which businesses 

are open.23 This marketing does not have to cost much; Hollywood’s marketing efforts include 

posting on the city website lists of businesses that are open and giving those lists to local news 

media. The city also gives businesses decals and door hangers that they can display to show 

they are open.

FEMA’s New England region has a pilot program called Open Store, in which FEMA engages 

private-sector critical commodity retailers and service providers in disaster preparedness efforts 

to help ensure that they can open for business and serve their communities as soon as possible 

after a disaster. Through this program, FEMA also works with state and local emergency 

management agencies to help with any operational and/or resupply issues businesses might 

have and provide immediate and accurate information on local retailer services and critical 

commodities available to the public after a disaster strikes.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

46

hazards generates jobs, better prepares communities for disasters, and improves regular 

service to residents and businesses. 

 Incorporate backup electricity

generation and resilience in the grid—

for example, through onsite renewable

energy or a microgrid. These

strategies can provide critical

redundancy if power from the grid is

disrupted, but they can also save users

money on energy costs every day.

Renewable energy reduces greenhouse

gas emissions from burning fossil

fuels for energy, which ultimately

reduces the degree of climate change

to which we will have to adapt.

 Work with utility providers to

improve resilience of critical systems.

Frequent and/or prolonged utility

disruptions and significant price

increases affecting electricity, heating,

cooling, drinking water, wastewater,

stormwater management, and

telecommunications services disrupt

home, business, and medical

operations—often with serious

implications for a community’s

economic health and its residents’

safety. Communities and utilities can

work together to prevent service

interruptions, quickly restore service

if an outage does occur, and improve

the resilience of critical systems.

Listing strategies that publicly or

privately owned utilities could take is

outside this document’s scope, but the

resources in Figures 19 and 20 can

help communities and utilities that

want to improve everyday operations and resilience.

Figure 19: Resources for water utilities to improve 

resilience

EPA’s Climate Ready Water Utilities Program has 

many resources, including:

 Adaptation Strategies Guide for Water Utilities

(www.epa.gov/crwu/learn-how-plan-climatechange-adaptation-strategies-guide-waterutilities), which offers specific strategies that

utilities can consider adopting to cope with

drought, water quality degradation, floods,

ecosystem changes, and service demand and use.

 The Climate Resilience Evaluation & Awareness

Tool (CREAT) (www.epa.gov/crwu/assess-waterutility-climate-risks-climate-resilience-evaluationand-awareness-tool), a software tool that can

help drinking water and wastewater utilities

understand climate change impacts and assess

risks.

 The Drinking Water and Wastewater Resilience

web area (www.epa.gov/waterresilience), which

includes more resilience resources for water

infrastructure.

Figure 20: Resources for energy utilities to improve 

resilience

U.S. Department of Energy resources include:

 “Community Guidelines for Energy Emergencies”

(energy.gov/oe/services/

energy-assurance/emergencypreparedness/community-guidelines-energyemergencies), which helps communities and

business owners prepare for and respond to an

energy-related emergency.

 Climate Change and the U.S. Energy Sector

(energy.gov/epsa/downloads/climate-changeand-us-energy-sector-regional-vulnerabilitiesand-resilience-solutions), which discusses

projected climate change impacts, vulnerabilities,

and resilience solutions for the energy sector in

each geographic region of the United States.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

47

 Implement green infrastructure techniques, which use soils, vegetation, and natural

processes to reduce polluted stormwater, to reduce flooding and protect water quality.

Green infrastructure can save local governments money by allowing them to spend less

on conventional “gray” infrastructure

such as storm sewers. In addition, it can

bring multiple community benefits,

including beautifying streets, parking

lots, and other paved areas; reducing

ambient air temperatures; and even

increasing property values.24,25

Retrofitting an existing site can include

adding artistic amenities or new

landscape areas that also capture, store,

and treat stormwater from roofs and

paved areas (Figure 21).

Many communities integrate green

infrastructure into other community

planning efforts to make sure they get

multiple benefits from green

infrastructure strategies. Incorporating

green infrastructure into land use and

development plans can help

communities protect open space and

create parks, encourage redevelopment

that will reduce impervious area in a

neighborhood, and design streets with

elements that reduce flooding and

stormwater runoff while making the

street safer and more pleasant for

pedestrians, bicyclists, and drivers

(Figure 22). Green infrastructure

elements such as green roofs can be

part of green building policies.26

Communities can offer incentives to businesses and commercial property owners to

install green infrastructure elements. Incentives could include grants, reimbursements, tax

credits, or other financial help to encourage them to install green infrastructure projects;

24 EPA. “Green Infrastructure.” www.epa.gov/green-infrastructure. 

25 EPA. Enhancing Sustainable Communities with Green Infrastructure. 2014. 

www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/enhancing-sustainable-communities-green-infrastructure. 

26 EPA Enhancing Sustainable Communities with Green Infrastructure. 

Figure 21: Stormwater-capture devices, such as these 

in Seattle, can be artistic as well as functional.

Figure 22: This street in Edmonston, Maryland, 

incorporates green infrastructure elements, including 

pervious paving in the bike lane, while making the 

street pleasant and safe for all users.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

48

awards or other public recognition; or, if the municipality has a stormwater fee, reduced 

fees.27 In addition, FEMA’s Community Rating System (CRS) gives credit for 

stormwater management strategies, and properties in a community that has a CRS 

classification have lower flood insurance premiums, another incentive for businesses.28

A resilient stormwater management system will be more than pipes, ponds, and culverts. 

It will achieve mutiple goals: mitigating drainage, water quality, and flood impacts; 

providing mutifunctional landscaping, open space, and recreation; improving air quality; 

connecting people; and creating a greater sense of place and beauty—or the kind of 

places we want to live, work, and visit.29

 Develop transportation networks with multimodal options that improve everyday

transportation but also can operate in emergencies (including redundant transportation

options so that if, for example, a road is closed due to flooding, people can take a

different route or take public transit to reach their destinations). A well-connected

transportation network that makes it safe and convenient to walk, bike, take public transit,

or drive shorter distances gives people more choices in how to get around and lets them

find alternate routes if their usual path is blocked. Making it easy for people to choose

other options besides driving reduces traffic congestion and air pollution, including

greenhouse gas emissions. Businesses in compact, centrally located places are easier for

customers and employees to reach, particularly if the region has public transit, and

employees can save money on commuting costs if walking, biking, or transit are safe and

convenient alternatives to driving.30

Well-connected networks also make it easier to evacuate quickly and safely by offering

multiple routes. Communities can further help with emergency evacuations by properly

signing routes, ensuring fuel availability by working with gasoline stations to make sure

that they have backup power, using solar power and batteries for traffic lights to prevent

power outages at critical intersections, and working with local social services and

medical providers to identify and assist people who cannot get themselves to safety.

27 EPA. Managing Wet Weather With Green Infrastructure Municipal Handbook: Incentive Mechanisms. 2009. 

www.epa.gov/green-infrastructure/green-infrastructure-municipal-handbook. 

28 FEMA. Reducing Damage from Localized Flooding: A Guide for Communities. 2005. www.fema.gov/medialibrary/assets/documents/1012. 

29 For more information about the estimated costs and benefits of green infrastructure practices, see: 

Center for Neighborhood Technology. “Green Values Stormwater Management Calculator.”

greenvalues.cnt.org/calculator/calculator.php. Accessed Nov. 17, 2015. 

EPA. Reducing Stormwater Costs through Low Impact Development (LID) Strategies and Practices. EPA 841-F-07-

006. 2007. www.epa.gov/green-infrastructure/stormwater-costs. 

Odefey, Jeffrey, et al. Banking on Green: A Look at How Green Infrastructure Can Save Municipalities Money and 

Provide Economic Benefits Community-Wide. American Rivers, Water Environment Federation, American Society 

of Landscape Architects, and ECONorthwest. 2012. www.americanrivers.org/assets/pdfs/reports-andpublications/banking-on-green-report.pdf. 

30 EPA. Smart Growth and Economic Success: The Business Case. 2013. www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/smart-growthand-economic-success-business-case. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

49

 Relocate or demolish at-risk municipal

facilities that cannot be made resilient.

In addition, consider establishing an

acquisition or buyout plan for at-risk

commercial properties. Local hazard

mitigation programs can receive

funding from FEMA to relocate or buy

buildings that cannot be made

resilient. Buyout programs pay the

property owner a fair market value for

the property based on its preflood

value. FEMA provides 75 percent of

the funding, and the remaining funds

must come from the locality, state, or

another source.31 Buyout programs

offer a permanent solution to the risks

and damages of repetitive flooding and

reduce future emergency response

costs. Buyout properties can also be

used for flood storage and conveyance

and permanent open space that provides an everyday amenity.

Property owner participation in FEMA buyout programs is voluntary. Some buildings are

demolished, and the land is used as open space or as part of a larger flood control facility.

If a building has historic value, it could be relocated or redeveloped with floodproofing to

maintain the community’s character while mitigating future hazards. Local governments

can apply to FEMA for funding to repair, relocate, or demolish public properties

damaged by floods.

While these programs often focus on residential properties, some buyout programs

include business properties, especially when recent disasters severely affected business

districts. When considering whether to include business property owners in a buyout

program, a community needs to weigh the total benefits of the buyout with total costs,

including the loss of tax revenue if that business relocates outside of the community. The

community would want to consider whether the businesses will ever come back, and if

not, if the buyout program could help them find another place in the community. Another

consideration is that local governments are responsible for the property after purchase,

and quick decisions on the future use of the property can minimize maintenance costs.

These decisions involve weighing the costs and benefits of potential property uses,

including redevelopment or use as flood control or open space. Any consideration of

31 FEMA. “Hazard Mitigation Grant Program.” www.fema.gov/hazard-mitigation-grant-program. Accessed Jan. 21, 

2016.

Figure 23: Resources to improve transportation 

infrastructure resilience

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and Federal 

Highway Administration (FHWA) have several 

resources to help communities, transportation 

departments, and transportation system operators 

make transportation networks more resilient. 

 FTA resources are available on its “Climate

Change Adaptation Initiatives” web page at

www.fta.dot.gov/regulations-andguidance/environmental-programs/fta-climatechange-adaptation-initiative. The FTA report

Flooded Bus Barns and Buckled Rails has tools

and strategies that public transit agencies can

use to prepare for and adapt to climate change.

 FHWA resources are available on its “Adaptation”

web page at

www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/climate_chang

e/adaptation. FHWA’s Adaptation Framework

helps local and regional transportation agencies

assess “the vulnerability of transportation assets

to climate change and extreme weather events.”
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

50

redevelopment should include a careful assessment of current flood insurance policies 

and requirements. 

EXAMPLE

In 1997, the Red River of the North flooded Grand Forks, North Dakota. The flood destroyed 

751 commercial buildings, and a fire that broke out during the flood damaged several historic 

downtown buildings. After the flood, the city bought and demolished about 1,500 properties, 

two-thirds of which were residences. Many of these properties became the Greenway, a 2,200-

acre recreational area in the flood plain that can hold flood water when the river is running high 

and is a much-valued amenity for the community the rest of the time. The city used HUD 

CDBG-DR funds to rebuild the downtown.32 Three-quarters of downtown businesses returned 

to refurbished locations in downtown, and the others relocated to other parts of the city or FEMA/ Brenda Riskey/UND 

closed.33

4. Help businesses plan and invest for climate hazards and opportunities. Communities can

look at climate change creatively and find ways to use their assets to help businesses pursue

opportunities.

 Promote development patterns that make it easier for businesses to be flexible and

experiment with new ideas. For example, allowing a mix of uses and building sizes in a

single district creates smaller, more affordable spaces for an entrepreneur to test a new

business idea or an existing business to try a new venture. Allowing home-based

32 HUD. “Preparing for the Next Disaster: Three Models of Building Resilient Communities.” Evidence Matters. 

Winter 2015. www.huduser.org/portal/periodicals/em/winter15/highlight3.html. 

33 North Dakota Division of Emergency Management and FEMA. “A River Runs Through It–Grand Forks’ Journey 

from Heartache to Hope.” From Journeys–North Dakota’s Trail Towards Disaster Resistance. 2000. 

www.fema.gov/region-viii-journeys-north-dakotas-trail-towards-disaster-resistance. FEMA/Michael Rieger

Figure 24: Flood and fire damage in Grand Forks’ downtown 

after the 1997 flood (left). The rebuilt downtown in 2006 

(right), with the Greenway along the river, flood gates at the 

entrance to downtown, and a levee being built between the 

Greenway and the downtown.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

51

businesses and live-work spaces means that a business owner does not have to pay rent or 

make mortgage payments on a separate workplace. 

 Develop educational, financing, and technical assistance programs to help businesses

improve the resilience of their infrastructure and operations (e.g., upgrade floodproofing,

rebuild more resilient structures, learn how to develop business continuity plans, or

switch to more resilient machinery or materials). State and local programs that finance

energy-efficiency upgrades could provide helpful examples. Depending on the funding

source, funding programs can be administered by a variety of entities, including state and

local governments and nonprofit organizations. The goal of these programs is to reduce

impacts to businesses over the long term and, when businesses are affected, to help them

reduce their recovery time and avoid further financial losses.

Federal funding for these programs is widely available for disaster-prone areas. The U.S.

Economic Development Administration (EDA) funds programs in communities where

the federal government has declared major disasters during a recent time period. Eligible

applicants include states, tribes, and local governments, and a 20 percent nonfederal

match is required.34 The following examples were funded through this program.

34 U.S. Economic Development Administration. “Announcement of Federal Funding Opportunity: FY 2012 Disaster 

Relief Opportunity.” Mar. 28, 2012. www.eda.gov/pdf/FY2012_Disaster_Relief_Opportunity_FFO_FINAL.pdf. 

35 Crater, Dana, et al. Case Studies in Small Business Finance Following a Disaster. International Economic 

Development Council. 2014. restoreyoureconomy.org/case-studies-small-business-finance-following-disaster. 

EXAMPLES

The Pennsylvania Small Business Development Center received an $879,000 EDA grant, 

which it used to create Operation Disaster Resiliency. This program provides free consulting 

services to small businesses to develop web strategies and continuity plans that will help them

be more resilient after a disaster. For example, businesses can get help with search engine 

optimization and other upgrades that can increase online sales. The continuity plans include 

ways to minimize disruption of business operations during disasters, including cloud-based 

information storage and communication plans.35 Helping small businesses improve online 

operations builds resilience because, during a disaster, business owners and staff can 

temporarily relocate out of the disaster zone and continue their operations online. Even if a 

company requires access to a warehouse affected by a disaster, enhanced online operations can 

improve communication with customers and employees, potentially minimizing interruptions 

and delays. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

52

36 Vermont Agency of Commerce & Community Development. “Vermont Economic Resiliency Initiative.” 

accd.vermont.gov/strong_communities/opportunities/planning/resiliency/VERI. Accessed Nov. 24, 2015. 

37 Vermont Agency of Commerce & Community Development. “Living With Roaring Branch: Bennington Case 

Study.” Undated. Accessed Feb. 8, 2016. 

accd.vermont.gov/sites/accd/files/Documents/strongcommunities/cpr/VERI_Bennington_CaseStudy.pdf. 

38 McConville, Megan. “East Central Iowa: On-the-Ground Assistance and Business Loans Support Recovery and 

Economic Competitiveness.” National Association of Development Organizations. Nov. 7, 2013. 

www.nado.org/east-central-iowa-on-the-ground-assistance-and-business-loans-support-recovery-and-economiccompetitiveness.

The Vermont Economic Resiliency 

Initiative was initiated by the 

Vermont Department of Housing 

and Community Development, 

working with the Natural Resources 

and Transportation agencies and the 

state’s regional planning 

commissions. With $500,000 in 

EDA funding, the state worked with 

five communities—Barre, Brandon, 

Brattleboro, Enosburg, and 

Woodstock—to develop local 

action plans to minimize future 

damage to infrastructure, reduce the number of businesses affected by disasters, speed business 

recovery, ensure supply chain continuity, and facilitate residents’ return to work.36 Vermont 

modeled the initiative on a very successful program in Bennington, Vermont, to break the cycle 

of business closures, job losses, and costly repairs following flooding of the Roaring Branch 

River, which flows through downtown. The town improved its economic resilience by taking a 

different approach to flood control that involved updating policies and regulations and 

reconnecting the river with its flood plain instead of walling it off with levees and other 

structural solutions. This approach paid off after Tropical Storm Irene; it is estimated that for 

the $725,000 invested in flood plain restoration and similar measures, the town avoided $93 

million in damages likely to have been incurred by Irene.37

The East Central Iowa Council of Governments received a $1.5 million EDA grant to establish 

a revolving loan fund and a $300,000 EDA grant to fund two disaster recovery coordinators. 

While the first coordinator focused on housing, the second helped business owners apply for 

disaster recovery funding. As of September 2013, the revolving loan fund had administered 

more than $3 million in loans. These loans leveraged an estimated $29.5 million from other 

sources. The coordinator also administered the Jumpstart Business Program, a state-funded 

forgivable loan program that provided loans to 80 businesses affected by flooding in east 

central Iowa. The council of governments estimates that investments related to its funding 

programs created 325 private-sector jobs and saved 327 private-sector jobs.38

Richard Amore, Vermont Department ofHousing and Community Development 

Figure 25: The success of Bennington’s efforts to protect its 

downtown from flooding inspired the state to offer similar 

assistance to other towns.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

53

 If the community or region uses marketing to attract and retain employers, incorporate a

climate resilience component into the marketing campaign that highlights public-sector

commitments to resilience and private-sector leaders that are preparing for climate

change. Communities that are better prepared for disasters than neighboring communities

could have a competitive edge in attracting business investment.

EXAMPLES

Chula Vista, California’s CLEAN Business Program gives member businesses networking 

opportunities, workshops, resources such as a free energy audit, and public recognition. 

Businesses can join for free but have to fill out a scorecard of the actions they are taking to use 

energy more efficiently, subject to verification by city staff.39 A community emphasizing

resilience could use this model to identify, support, and promote businesses that are preparing 

for natural disasters and climate change impacts.

An Urban Land Institute report found that individual private developments can differentiate 

themselves from the rest of the market with resilience features. For example, an office building 

in Miami that was fortified against hurricanes with a lobby elevated to avoid flooding, impactresistant glass, and a second backup generator to ensure adequate power proved attractive to 

companies that wanted to be sure their operations could continue through a storm.40

39 Chula Vista. “CLEAN Business Program.” www.chulavistaca.gov/departments/clean/clean-business-program. 

Accessed Oct. 13, 2015. 

40 Urban Land Institute. Returns on Resilience: The Business Case. ULI Center for Sustainability. 2015. uli.org/wpcontent/uploads/ULI-Documents/Returns-on-Resilience-The-Business-Case.pdf. 

NORTH KINGSTOWN EXAMPLE

After the assessment of likely impacts of climate change on the local economy was completed, 

the town’s principal planner met with staff from EPA and Rhode Island Statewide Planning to 

discuss options for actions the town might take to enhance economic resilience. Among the 

options discussed were creating a clear, consistent message about challenges and opportunities 

associated with climate change; working with the chamber of commerce, EDAB, and others to 

help local businesses develop continuity-of-operations plans; networking with other Rhode 

Island municipalities facing similar challenges and opportunities; and strengthening the 

resilience of local utilities, including drinking water and wastewater.

Other options for improving resilience are already underway, including incorporation of hazards 

in the ongoing update of the town’s comprehensive plan and a pilot project with the University 

of Rhode Island on green infrastructure to reduce flooding. Town staff noted that although the 

framework focuses on businesses, residential properties also are very important to the local 

economy, since revenue from local property taxes supports a significant portion of the town’s 

operations, including schools and other municipal services.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

54

B. Private-Sector Actions 

Businesses that can operate with minimal interruption during and after storms and from other 

climate stressors will have a competitive advantage. In addition, some industries are positioned 

to provide services and products that will enhance the resilience of clients’ assets and operations. 

Individual business or property owners could consider taking action to improve their (and their 

community’s) resilience and explore opportunities that could arise as the climate changes. 

1. Improve resilience.

 Build human resources capacity to manage climate hazards.

o Share the results or key findings of the assessment with firm leadership to gain insight

into how company leaders think about risk and resilience and to start or continue a

conversation about improving resilience to climate hazards.

o Share the results or key findings of the assessment with operational managers as well

as with employees. Skilled, semi-skilled, unskilled, and managerial employees each

have distinct and keen understandings of a firm’s processes, current constraints, and

current opportunities. Many industries use small groups of “factory floor” employees

to innovate on processes or products; a working group of employees involved in dayto-day operations will have a strong knowledge base from which to propose strategies

that improve the firm’s climate resilience.

o Train managers and employees in emergency response, and provide guidance to

workers on how they can prepare their households for an emergency.

o Depending on the size of your firm, incorporate climate hazard management into the

role of an existing employee or create a position to take this role. If this human

resource investment is a difficult sell, keep in mind that the cost of inaction might be

much higher than the cost of action.

 Building on capacity-building efforts, plan for the vulnerabilities and opportunities

that accompany climate change hazards.

o Incorporate relevant findings from the assessment and the needs of the firm into your

strategic planning. Incorporate the concept of resilience—focused on flexibility,

strength, and learning—into strategic planning and values statements.

o Identify areas where additional products, processes, and relationships are needed to

enhance the resilience of the firm. Identify the sources of these assets and build them

into short- or long-term plans for the firm.

o Share key findings of the assessment with the chamber of commerce, trade

organizations, or other groups, and strategize about opportunities to improve

resilience while supporting and enhancing profitability. Networks with common

interests can promote improved outcomes for all, even if individual firms or

organizations are competing with each other. This strategy could be particularly

relevant if a climate hazard poses a specific and common concern for the area.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

55

o Create or update a continuity-ofoperations plan, which helps businesses

determine potential risks and how they

might affect the business and, in an

emergency, determine which activities

need to continue and how to resume

operations as soon as possible (Figure 26).

o Take a close look at any chemicals on site

that could create a risk in the event of a

flood or storm surge, and how they are

stored. Ensure that the firm complies with

state and federal requirements for

hazardous waste management. If your

facility is in a flood-prone area, elevate

chemical storage areas above flood level

or eliminate outside storage if possible. Tie down and secure all containers and

anything else that could be dislodged by floodwaters, including emergency

generators. Consider pollution prevention to eliminate or reduce use of hazardous

chemicals or materials.

 Make structural investments.

o Implement floodproofing measures (e.g., install watertight shields over doors,

windows and other openings; raise elevation of electrical boxes, heating and

ventilation systems, generators, and other utilities above projected flood elevations;

and anchor the foundation). Project work might include a combination of structural

elevations to raise a building above flood levels and wet or dry floodproofing,

depending on the site conditions and the building design.

41

Wet floodproofing methods allow water inside the building but minimize damage.

Strategies include raising first floors above the flood plain and allowing the basement

to flood during times of high water, relocating the building’s major mechanical

systems (e.g., HVAC, electrical boxes, generators) and occupied spaces above the

flood waters, and installing engineered flood vents that allow hydrostatic pressure on

the walls to equalize, preventing wall collapse.

Dry floodproofing prevents water from infiltrating the building envelope by

waterproofing exterior walls, openings, and basements. This approach is better suited

for buildings without basements due to under seepage (i.e., water seeping up from the

floor slab) and hydrostatic pressure on the basement walls. Dry floodproofing systems

can be used in buildings with basements but might require a system to pump out

water that does seep into the buildings. Actions include installing flood-resistant or

41 FEMA offers extensive guidance on floodproofing options; see: FEMA. Floodproofing Non-Residential 

Buildings. 2013. www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/34270. 

Figure 26: Resources for continuity-ofoperations planning

 Ready.gov has resources to help with

business continuity planning

(www.ready.gov/business).

 The Insurance Institute for Business &

Home Safety offers the free OFB-EZ®

tool, designed for small businesses

with limited resources

(www.disastersafety.org/disastersafe

ty/open-for-business-ez).

 The Red Cross’ Ready Rating Program

offers self-assessments for businesses

to determine how prepared they are

for emergencies, as well as other

resources (www.readyrating.org).
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

56

watertight doors, windows, and openings; waterproofing exterior walls and masonry 

joints in the foundation; upgrading access doors from the basement to the outside; 

reinforcing walls; upgrading and elevating flooring materials; and installing backflow 

valves to prevent water from entering the building through sanitary sewer systems. 

Benefits include reduced rebuilding costs, reduced insurance premiums, continuity of 

operations in an emergency, and supply chain resilience. Several federal funding 

sources can help pay for these improvements, including FEMA programs such as the 

Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, Flood Mitigation Assistance Program, and PreDisaster Mitigation Grant Program, and HUD’s CDBG-DR program. Some local and 

state government agencies can help with funding as well; benefits to communities 

include retaining local businesses, jobs, and the tax base; protecting historic character 

(if the floodproofing is done carefully); and preserving a healthy business district that 

provides services and amenities that attract visitors, residents, and investment. 

o Implement green infrastructure practices such as porous paving in parking lots and

sidewalks, green roofs, and rain gardens to manage stormwater runoff on site. These

practices can be retrofitted into already-developed property or can be a central design

feature in new development and redevelopment. Section 5.2A has more

comprehensive information on green infrastructure; this section deals only with

private property owners implementing these strategies.

42 FEMA. “Multiple Mitigation Measures Give Darlington an Elevating Experience.” Undated. 

emergencymanagement.wi.gov/mitigation/stories/BP_Darlington.pdf. 

EXAMPLE

Darlington, Wisconsin, like many communities, has a historic downtown that is the 

community’s economic hub and a significant contributor to the city’s sense of place. However, 

the Pecatonica River, which curves around the downtown, frequently floods. Downtown 

businesses suffered structural damage as a result, and property values dropped. While 

businesses could have moved out of the downtown area to reduce their risks, their relocation 

would harm the city’s character and economic health. A coalition of local officials, residents, 

and business owners developed a mitigation plan to protect downtown businesses and the 

economy from future damage while maintaining the historic district designation. Local business 

owners paid for improvements to their own properties to bring them up to code and incorporate 

resilience measures, while the city used grants from federal and state agencies to pay for 

community projects. Floodproofing for many Main Street businesses included filling basements 

with concrete, elevating first floors, installing flood-resistant materials, flood protection for 

mechanical systems, and ramps to provide access for people with disabilities. After these 

investments, downtown businesses successfully withstood major flooding in 2007 and 2008, 

and property values in the downtown nearly doubled compared to before the improvements.42
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

57

Green infrastructure techniques can save 

property and business owners money while 

helping to protect their property from 

flooding, reduce ambient air temperatures, 

and add attractive plants and design 

elements. Cisterns capture rainwater to reuse 

for irrigation, saving money on water bills 

(Figures 27 and 28). Green roofs also 

capture runoff and insulate the building, 

helping to reduce heating and cooling bills

(Figure 29). Adding green infrastructure 

elements to parking lots, which along with 

roofs are often the largest expanses of 

impervious area on a development site, can 

reduce stormwater runoff significantly while 

also making the lot more attractive and 

cooler (Figure 30). Preserving and planting 

trees in new development or redevelopment 

sites can similarly slow rainfall while 

cooling and cleaning the air.

Sometimes, incorporating these practices 

into a site design can add time and money; 

however, it could save both in the event of a 

heavy rain storm by reducing runoff, 

ponding, and local flooding. Often, if 

incorporated into the early site design, green 

infrastructure practices can reduce overall 

infrastructure development costs. Some 

local governments have cost-share and

technical assistance programs to install 

green infrastructure on private property.43

43 For examples of communities that help private landowners install green infrastructure, see the “Incentive 

Mechanisms” chapter of EPA’s Green Infrastructure Municipal Handbook. 2009. www.epa.gov/greeninfrastructure/green-infrastructure-municipal-handbook. 

Figure 27: Cisterns can capture runoff 

from roofs and store it to be used or 

irrigation or other nonpotable uses

Figure 28: The 11,000-gallon cistern behind 

the white screen at the Langston-Brown 

Community Center in Arlington, Virginia, 

stores rainwater to reuse for onsite irrigation.

Figure 29: Lightweight and easy-to-maintain 

green roofs can be added to existing roofs. Tetra Tech

Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

58

Tetra Tech

o Consider where it makes sense to locate

or expand your business, taking into

account projected climate change

impacts, connections to public transit

and walking and biking facilities as well

as roads, and proximity to customers

and workers. More comprehensive and

sustainable approaches to business siting

take into account factors that help the

business during daily operations and

improve its resilience during and after a

natural disaster—for example, good

connections to multiple transportation

options and proximity to customers and workers. Diverse transportation options can

improve a business’ access to suppliers or distributors and reduce the risk of supply

chain interruptions. More sustainable, comprehensive siting approaches can also help

businesses attract employees and customers who value those amenities, providing a

competitive edge.

Some businesses, such as those that work with hazardous materials, might be required

to site locations outside of flood plains or other hazardous areas. For other businesses,

like day care facilities, siting outside hazardous areas can ensure safety for their

customers. Considering projected climate change impacts when determining a safer

location helps a business protect the safety of its employees and customers and reduce

the risk of property damage in the long term.

If a business is not already considering these factors during siting, adding them could

increase the time and cost of siting new locations or expansions. These costs vary

depending on the individual business but are likely to be only a small increase (if any)

in siting costs, especially if data on hazards, projected climate change impacts, and

transportation networks are readily available. However, the land or rent might be

more expensive at sites in safer locations well connected to transportation options. In

that case, when determining where it makes the most sense to locate, the business

might want to consider the costs of protecting, repairing or rebuilding, or even

shutting down its facility if it locates in a more hazardous area.

 Make operational investments. Investing in water- and energy-efficient equipment and

practices to reduce resource consumption can increase a business’ climate resilience.

Future climate change impacts, as well as changing legislation and societal awareness,

might affect the cost and availability of resources necessary for everyday functions.

Using resources more efficiently protects the individual business from disruptions and

saves it money. If done by the industry collectively, it can lessen the strain on that

resource. Businesses that rely on a resource that is likely to become scarcer and/or more

Figure 30: Existing developments can retrofit 

parking lots to add green infrastructure elements 

in medians and perimeter landscape areas. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

59

expensive as the climate changes could promote themselves as “climate ready” to 

potential customers by showing how they are using that resource more efficiently. 

Businesses could participate in industry-specific outreach, training, and coordination 

(e.g., conferences, online training, or informal informational exchanges) to share 

successes in operational investments to reduce their industry’s risks from resource 

limitations, supply chain concerns, or other factors. These efforts can also lead to better 

training to help staff understand, prepare for, and manage hazardous events. These types 

of informational events can be encouraged by individual businesses and coordinated by 

regional chambers of commerce, trade associations, or other industry groups. 

Companies can ask their suppliers and distributors how they are preparing for climate 

change and discuss building secure, flexible, geographically diverse networks. Businesses 

could also take this opportunity to explore products, processes, and relationships that 

would provide mutual benefits to customers and suppliers. 

EXAMPLE

Nokia, maker of cell phones and communication equipment, shows how adjustments to a 

company’s supply chain and operational investments can improve economic resilience. In 

2000, severe thunderstorms in Albuquerque, New Mexico, set fire to a production plant that 

supplied two essential components of Nokia’s cellphone manufacturing. Fire and smoke 

damage shut down production. Without these components, Nokia stood to delay the production 

of 4 million cellphones, approximately 5 percent of the company’s annual production. At the 

time, the New Mexico supplier was Nokia’s only manufacturer of these two essential parts.

After navigating the crisis by acquiring parts from the supplier’s alternate facilities, Nokia 

invested in its supply-chain management and operations to ensure the situation did not happen 

again. Many of these investments improved management of its suppliers, including 

implementing an advanced tracking system for major shipments, establishing a risk 

management assessment for each of its major suppliers accompanied by contingency plans, and 

training its major suppliers to better understand the new systems. Nokia also invested in 

improvements to its entire supply chain to diversify the number and location of its suppliers to 

avoid single-sourcing key parts. These investments help Nokia better withstand supply-chain 

impacts from natural disasters and other causes.44

2. Pursue opportunities to move into climate-related and/or climate-resilient markets. Climateresilient markets are relatively less dependent on a particular climate outcome. Examples of

climate-related markets include engineering services; designing, installing, and maintaining

green infrastructure; developing climate projections; weather-related insurance; designing,

building, or retrofitting homes to be flood-resistant; developing material innovations such as

saltwater-resistant materials; developing drought-resistant crops; and installing and

maintaining renewable energy and energy- and water-efficiency technology and practices

44 Handfield, Rob. “Reducing the Impact of Disruptions to the Supply Chain.” Sascom Magazine. 2007. 

www.sas.com/resources/asset/sascom.pdf. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

60

that conserve resources and allow buildings to remain habitable if they lose external power. 

For example, Recover Green Roofs, a small business in Somerville, Massachusetts, designs, 

installs, and maintains green roofs.45

 Companies that might be able to move into a climate-related market could conduct

formal market research that considers not just past demand but growth projections.

Analyze local markets or markets in which the firm already works for entry opportunities.

Firms that do not work in a sector that serves a climate market could assess the soft

returns on leadership in resilience, such as community or national recognition.

 Identify regional innovation hubs working on vulnerabilities in your industry (e.g.,

materials or shipping solutions), and explore opportunities to partner or pilot technologies

or practices. These collaborations could occur with universities, private incubators and

accelerators, and small business technology initiatives.

 Build relationships with firms doing complementary work in climate-related markets to

build a base for partnerships (e.g., through networking events among entities working in

this area). A regional cluster in a field of interest provides agglomeration benefits, like

innovation opportunities and workforce availability, that can help firms become

competitive, particularly firms that are poised to be “first to market.”

 Build relationships with institutions that provide workforce training, such as community

colleges, four-year colleges, and vocational high schools, to develop a talent pipeline and

improve the overall talent pool for the climate-related market.

 Work with nonprofit partners who train workers for careers that help build economic and

community resilience, such as weatherizing homes, installing green infrastructure, or

rehabilitating structures to both bring them back to productive use and make them better

able to withstand climate-related impacts. Businesses could work with those programs to

help identify the most-sought skills, offer internships, and agree to hire graduates of the

program. These job-training programs benefit businesses by giving them local workers

with the skills they need, and they benefit workers by helping them get a job, build a

career, and perhaps even open their own business.

45 Reynolds, Lea. Climate Change Preparedness and the Small Business Sector. Small Business Majority and the 

American Sustainable Business Council. 2013. www.smallbusinessmajority.org/small-business-research/cleanenergy/climate-change-preparedness-and-small-business.php. 

46 PUSH Buffalo. “How to Grow a Green Economy.” greendevelopmentzone.org. Accessed Mar. 25, 2016.

EXAMPLE

The nonprofit PUSH Buffalo works with local building contractors to revitalize a disinvested 

neighborhood in Buffalo, New York, by rehabilitating and weatherizing homes and putting 

vacant lots back into productive use as rain gardens or community gardens. It helps the 

contractors find qualified local workers by creating a “job training pipeline” with organizations 

that train low-income workers in needed skills.46
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

61

 Tourism-related businesses could consider what amenities might make it possible to

sustain—or change—their business given anticipated changes in weather patterns. For

example, beachside businesses that are likely to see hotter days might want to invest in

shaded patios, while ski areas might want to offer summer or indoor activities. Changing

weather patterns could bring new opportunities, such as a longer beach season.

 Incorporating onsite renewable energy

generation and energy- and water-efficient

technology and practices into buildings helps

occupants of those buildings save money and

remain comfortable even if external power is

lost. These technologies also fit well with

many companies and communities’ efforts to

reduce greenhouse gas emissions, save

money on energy and water, and adapt to a

future with more drought. Companies can

explore opportunities to develop these

technologies and practices and train workers

to install and maintain them.

Figure 31: Solar panel installation creates jobs 

while making recipients more resilient to power 

outages.

U.S. Department of Energy
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

62

III. Conclusion

This planning framework is designed to be adaptable to a variety of contexts and circumstances. 

It can be scaled down to examine an individual district or neighborhood or scaled up for a 

metropolitan region or even a state. Different economic sectors and climate-related impacts can 

be added or removed, depending on the user’s needs. 

Ultimately, the framework can help a community, region, or state think about how its local 

economy could prepare for the threats and opportunities that climate change might bring. It can 

also help local governments and businesses think about how improving underlying land use and 

development practices can better position them to prepare for extreme weather conditions and 

take advantage of evolving opportunities while improving quality of life and local economic 

development in the short term. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy

63

Appendix A: EPA Smart Growth Implementation 

Assistance Program 

Communities around the country are looking to get the most from new development and to 

maximize their investments. Frustrated by development that gives residents no choice but to 

drive long distances between jobs and housing, many communities are bringing workplaces, 

homes, and services closer together. Communities are examining and changing zoning codes that 

make it impossible to build neighborhoods with a variety of housing types. They are questioning 

the fiscal wisdom of neglecting existing infrastructure while expanding new sewers, roads, and 

services into the fringe. Many places that have been successful in ensuring that development 

improves their community, economy, and environment have used smart growth principles to do 

so. Smart growth describes development patterns that create attractive, distinctive, and walkable 

communities that give people of varying age, wealth, and physical ability a range of safe, 

convenient choices in where they live and how they get around. Growing smart also means that 

we use our existing resources efficiently and preserve the lands, buildings, and environmental 

features that shape our neighborhoods, towns, and cities. 

However, communities often need additional 

tools, resources, or information to achieve 

these goals. In response to this need, EPA 

launched the Smart Growth Implementation 

Assistance Program to provide technical 

assistance—through contractor services—to 

selected communities. 

The goals of this assistance are to improve the 

overall climate for infill, brownfields 

redevelopment, and revitalization—as well as 

to promote development that meets economic, 

community, public health, and environmental 

goals. EPA and its contractor assemble teams 

whose members have expertise that meets 

community needs. While engaging community 

participants on their aspirations for 

development, the team can bring their 

experiences from working in other parts of the 

country to provide best practices for the 

community to consider. 

For more information on the program, including reports from communities that have received 

assistance, see www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/smart-growth-implementation-assistance. 

Figure A-1: Smart Growth Principles

Based on the experience of communities around the 

nation, the Smart Growth Network developed a set 

of 10 basic principles: 

 Mix land uses.

 Take advantage of compact building design.

 Create a range of housing opportunities and

choices.

 Create walkable neighborhoods.

 Foster distinctive, attractive communities with

a strong sense of place.

 Preserve open space, farmland, natural

beauty, and critical environmental areas.

 Strengthen and direct development towards

existing communities.

 Provide a variety of transportation choices.

 Make development decisions predictable, fair,

and cost effective.

 Encourage community and stakeholder

collaboration in development decisions.

Source: Smart Growth Network. “Why Smart Growth?”

www.smartgrowth.org/why.php.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

64

Appendix B: Resources on Climate Change, Smart 

Growth, and Economic Resilience 

Amado, Jean-Christophe, and Peter Adams. PREP Value Chain Climate Resilience: A Guide to 

Managing Climate Impacts in Companies and Communities. Partnership for Resilience and 

Environmental Preparedness (PREP). 2012. www.oxfamamerica.org/explore/researchpublications/prep-value-chain-climate-resilience. Introduces the Business ADAPT (analyze, 

develop, assess, prioritize, and tackle) tool, a step-by-step climate resilience framework inspired 

by existing good practice risk management models. 

American Planning Association. Policy Guide on Planning & Climate Change. Adopted 2008, 

updated 2011. www.planning.org/policy/guides/pdf/climatechange.pdf. Explains the role of 

planners in addressing climate change and offers policy recommendations for federal, state, and 

local actions on climate change. 

British Standards Institution and Climate Ready. Adapting to Climate Change using your 

Business Continuity Management System. 2014. www.bsigroup.com/en-GB/forms/Adapting-toClimate-Change-using-your-Business-Continuity-Management-System. Practical guide to help 

business continuity professionals understand and manage severe weather risks as part of their 

existing business continuity management system.

Crawford, Meg, and Stephen Seidel. Weathering the Storm: Building Business Resilience to 

Climate Change. Center for Climate and Energy Solutions. 2013.

www.c2es.org/publications/weathering-storm-building-business-resilience-climate-change. 

Looks at how multinational companies are assessing and addressing the risks of extreme weather 

and other climate change impacts. 

EPA Smart Growth Program. www.epa.gov/smartgrowth. Resources on a variety of smart 

growth topics. See particularly: 

 Planning for Flood Recovery and Long-Term Resilience in Vermont: Smart Growth 

Approaches for Disaster-Resilient Communities. 2014.

www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/planning-flood-recovery-and-long-term-resilience-vermont.

 Using Smart Growth Strategies to Create More Resilient Communities in the 

Washington, D.C., Region. 2013. www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/using-smart-growthstrategies-create-more-resilient-communities-washington-dc-region. Guidebook of policy 

options for local governments that help prepare for climate risks while also meeting other 

environmental, economic, and social goals. 

 Smart Growth and Economic Success series. 2012-2014. 

www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/smart-growth-and-economic-success-benefits-real-estatedevelopers-investors-business-and. Reports exploring the economic advantages of smart 

growth for businesses, real estate developers and investors, and local governments. 

FEMA. Plan Integration: Linking Local Planning Efforts. 2015. www.fema.gov/medialibrary/assets/documents/108893. Can help communities integrate hazard mitigation principles 

into other local planning mechanisms.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy

65

FHWA. Virtual Framework for Vulnerability Assessment. Undated. 

www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/climate_change/adaptation/adaptation_framework. Tool to help 

assess the vulnerability of transportation assets to climate change and extreme weather. 

Hoffman, Andrew J. “Climate Science as Culture War.” Stanford Social Innovation Review. Fall 

2012. Frames the social issues of climate change.

National Institute of Standards and Technology. Community Resilience Economic Decision 

Guide for Buildings and Infrastructure Systems. 2015. www.nist.gov/manuscript-publicationsearch.cfm?pub_id=919223. Provides a standard economic methodology for evaluating 

investment decisions to improve communities’ ability to adapt to, withstand, and quickly recover 

from disasters.

National Institute of Standards and Technology. Community Resilience Planning Guide for 

Buildings and Infrastructure Systems. 2015. www.nist.gov/el/resilience/guide.cfm. Presents a 

six-step process to help communities think through and plan for their social and economic needs, 

their hazard risks, and recovery of the built environment.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). “Climate.” www.noaa.gov/climate.

Links to NOAA resources on climate change impacts and projections. 

NOAA Sea Grant. “National Sea Grant Resilience Toolkit.”

seagrant.noaa.gov/WhatWeDo/ResilienceToolkit.aspx. A compilation of tools and resources that 

the Sea Grant Network has developed to help communities become more resilient.

Reynolds, Lea. Climate Change Preparedness and the Small Business Sector. Small Business 

Majority and the American Sustainable Business Council. 2013. 

www.smallbusinessmajority.org/small-business-research/clean-energy/climate-changepreparedness-and-small-business.php. Includes case studies from a variety of sectors and policy 

recommendations to help small businesses better prepare for extreme weather events.

Rhode Island Commerce Corporation. Understanding the Economic Development Opportunity & 

Impact of Climate Change. April 2014 (draft). 

www.planning.ri.gov/documents/climate/CommerceRI_EDandClimate_1.pdf. Framework for 

planning and preparing for the economic development opportunities and impacts related to 

climate change.

U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit. toolkit.climate.gov. Brings together climate resilience resources 

from across the federal government. 

University of Rhode Island’s Coastal Resources Center and Rhode Island Sea Grant. Catalog of 

Adaptation Techniques for Coastal and Waterfront Businesses: Options to help deal with the 

impacts of storms & sea level rise. 2015. www.beachsamp.org/wpcontent/uploads/2015/05/adaptation_catalogue.pdf. Guide to help business owners understand 

their exposure and risks from climate change, with information on adaptation techniques.

Vermont Small Business Development Center. Disaster Recovery Guide for Business. Undated.

www.vtsbdc.org/programs/irene-business-recovery. Guide with worksheets and checklists to 

help businesses figure out how to proceed after a disaster.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

66

Appendix C: Supplemental Information on Hazard 

Exposure Assessment 

This appendix provides additional information on conducting climate-related hazard exposure 

assessments for communities that might not have completed an assessment or that want to build 

on their current assessment. This information focuses on some of the primary sources of data and 

tools to support assessment and is not meant to be a detailed, step-by-step guide. It is organized 

by the three levels outlined in step 2.3: 

1. Basic approach.

2. Moderate approach (using GIS).

3. Advanced approach (using Hazus).

1. Basic Approach

A basic climate hazard exposure assessment can give the team a general sense of the potential 

impacts the community might experience. The team can use online tools and maps discussing 

regional climate changes as a reasonable starting point to help raise awareness and for general 

planning purposes. This section provides information for flooding, sea level rise, storm surge, 

drought, and extreme heat. 

Many communities in the United States have hazard mitigation plans, and if the local community 

does not have one, the region or state might have one that would be useful. Flooding, storm 

surges, drought, and extreme heat are all likely to be included in hazard mitigation plans. Many 

of these plans have a chapter on climate change, but it is not required at the federal level. A 

hazard mitigation plan might be a good starting point to identify the multihazard risks that 

climate change could exacerbate and analyze them against climate change projections, keeping 

in mind that climate change could introduce new stressors that are not covered in the plan. For 

more information on hazard mitigation plans, see the FEMA Hazard Mitigation Planning web 

page at www.fema.gov/hazard-mitigation-planning. 

Several resources can help identify potential climate hazards: 

 The 2014 National Climate Assessment Report includes observed changes and projected

impacts on regions and sectors at nca2014.globalchange.gov.

 Regional climate scenarios developed for the National Climate Assessment are available

at scenarios.globalchange.gov.

 The U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit links to resources from across the federal

government at toolkit.climate.gov.

 NOAA’s Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessment program provides detailed

climate change scenarios and project impacts at

cpo.noaa.gov/ClimatePrograms/ClimateandSocietalInteractions/RISAProgram.aspx.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

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 EPA’s Scenario-Based

Projected Changes Map, an

easy-to-use mapping tool,

provides local projected

changes in annual total

precipitation, precipitation

intensity, annual average

temperature, 100-year

storm events, and sea level

rise at www.epa.gov/crwu/

view-your-water-utilitysclimate-projectionscenario-based-projectedchanges-map.

 NOAA’s Coastal Flood 

Exposure Mapper tool for 

the East Coast and Gulf of Mexico allows a user to quickly generate and share maps that

show shallow coastal flooding areas, FEMA flood zones, storm surge, and sea level rise

at coast.noaa.gov/digitalcoast/tools/flood-exposure.

Flooding 

Low-lying areas can be at risk from flooding, and where climate change is projected to bring 

more intense rainfall events, flood plain boundaries could expand. FEMA has mapped the flood 

risk throughout much of the United States. These maps are available at the Flood Map Service 

Center at msc.fema.gov. These flood plains have been developed using historical data and do not 

consider climate change. Therefore, many communities have decided to add a factor of safety 

expressed in feet above the base flood, often called “excess freeboard.” 

If the community lies in an unmapped part of the United States, the community’s hazard 

mitigation plan should include flood maps. If the plan is not available, the community’s 

emergency management department or town planner might be able to provide useful materials. 

Sea Level Rise 

As sea levels rise, a community’s low-lying areas might flood more frequently during high tides,

and some areas will become permanently submerged. NOAA has a sea level rise viewer, which 

shows how coastal areas could be affected by various rates of sea level rise, at

coast.noaa.gov/digitalcoast/tools/slr. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has a calculator that lets 

a user select the nearest tide gauge to his or her community and get sea level rise projections at 

www.corpsclimate.us/ccaceslcurves.cfm.

Several states have climate change reports with sea level rise estimates. These estimates can be 

combined with the NOAA sea level rise viewer information to see the most likely projections for 

Figure C-1: Screenshot of a sample map and projections from

EPA’s Scenario-Based Projected Changes Map.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

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inundation areas in the community or region for different climate change scenarios. Make sure 

that the projections incorporate climate change and not simply historical trends. 

Storm Surge 

In addition to the heavy precipitation from strong coastal storms such as hurricanes and 

nor’easters that causes flooding, the winds can generate a storm surge that temporarily inundates 

low-lying areas. Mapping these surge zones lets the team better understand which community 

assets are at risk. 

EPA’s Storm Surge Inundation and 

Hurricane Strike Frequency Map, 

at www.epa.gov/crwu/see-coastalstorm-surge-scenarios-waterutilities, is an easy-to-use mapping 

tool that illustrates coastal storm 

surge and inundation scenarios 

based on NOAA’s Sea, Lake, and 

Overland Surge from Hurricanes 

(SLOSH) models, FEMA’s 100- 

and 500-year flood plains, and the 

National Hurricane Center’s 

hurricane strike data set. 

A community can see how many 

coastal storms have occurred in the 

area by viewing historical storm 

tracks and characteristics at the 

National Hurricane Center’s archives at www.nhc.noaa.gov/data/#tracks_us. The storm reports 

on that site include more information than the EPA mapping tool, including wind speeds, 

pressures, surge, total losses, and locations. 

Another source of information is the Applied Technology Council’s wind speed website at

windspeed.atcouncil.org. A community can identify its 10-, 25-, 50-, and 100-year wind speed.

Wind speeds have been developed using historical data including hurricane information. Users 

might need to type in addresses across the community to better understand the range of current 

100-year wind speeds. 

Drought 

The Drought Risk Atlas, at droughtatlas.unl.edu, can help identify drought risk based on 

historical events. To help determine if the community might experience drought conditions in the 

future, the team can see information about projected future precipitation and temperature at the 

Climate Wizard website at www.climatewizard.org.

Figure C-2: Screenshot of a sample map from EPA’s Storm Surge 

Inundation and Hurricane Strike Frequency Map.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

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Extreme Heat 

To help determine if the community might experience extreme heat conditions in the future, the 

team can see information about projected future temperatures at the Climate Wizard website.

2. Moderate Approach 

The moderate, GIS-based approach can 

give the community a better sense of the 

likelihood and magnitude of potential 

impacts. The team will need to identify 

online data and GIS tools for this approach. 

This analysis typically takes considerably 

more time and resources than the basic 

approach but could more accurately depict 

the impacts, which might help the 

community more forcefully justify 

adaptation strategies. See the list of 

resources in section 1 of this appendix 

(Basic Approach) for sites that can provide 

regional climate change projections as well 

as GIS data that can be downloaded and 

analyzed. This section provides information 

for flooding, sea level rise, storm surge, 

drought, and extreme heat. 

Flooding 

The moderate approach involves identifying and using flood data in GIS or modeling projections 

of future flood conditions using hydrologic and hydraulic modeling for river flooding or a 

hydrodynamic model for coastal flooding. 

The team can download the National Flood Hazard Layer from FEMA’s Flood Map Service 

Center at msc.fema.gov. This layer includes existing flood plains developed using historical data. 

To model flooding in the mid- and late-century scenarios, the team can use U.S. Geological 

Survey (USGS) regression equations that calculate a river’s flow based on watershed and 

climatic characteristics and are provided by state at water.usgs.gov/osw/programs/nss/pubs.html. 

If the user knows the mid- and late-century watershed and climatic characteristics, he or she can 

calculate the river’s flow for these scenarios. To understand these characteristics, the team can 

look at the peak-flow annual exceedance probabilities at the USGS national climate change 

viewer website (see Figure C-3). The site provides an equation that relates the peak flow to the 

watershed and climatic characteristics. If the user knows the future characteristics, he or she can 

calculate the future peak flow. See Figure C-3 for other sources for future climate characteristics. 

Figure C-3: Resources for projected climate 

characteristics

Communities can find projected future climate 

characteristics at:

 The Bias-Correction Spatial Disaggregation (BCSD) 

climate and hydrology downscaled data for the 

Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 5 

(CMIP5) at gdodcp.ucllnl.org/downscaled_cmip_projections.

 North American Regional Climate Change 

Assessment Program (NARCCAP) dynamically 

downscaled Coupled Model Intercomparison 

Project phase 3 (CMIP3) at

www.narccap.ucar.edu.

 The USGS national climate change viewer at

www.usgs.gov/climate_landuse/clu_rd/nexdcp30.asp.

 The Climate Change, Agriculture and Food 

Security global downscaled data (see the MarkSim 

spatial downscaling for finer resolution) at

www.ccafs-climate.org.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

70

Sea Level Rise 

To determine sea level rise in the community, the team can find local sea level trends on 

NOAA’s Tides and Currents website at tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/sltrends/sltrends.html. For 

guidance on using and mapping the sea level rise data, see: NOAA. Technical Considerations for 

Use of Geospatial Data in Sea Level Change Mapping and Assessment. NOAA Technical Report 

NOS 2010-01. 2010. 

www.ngs.noaa.gov/PUBS_LIB/Technical_Use_of_Geospatial_Data_2010_TM_NOS_01.pdf.

To quantify the sea level rise, the team can use the global projections in conjunction with the 

local trends from the Tides and Currents website. 

Once the team identifies sea level rise estimate(s), it can get a digital elevation model for the 

community or state. For a coastal area, see NOAA’s Digital Coast website at 

coast.noaa.gov/digitalcoast/dataregistry/?redirect=301ocm#; otherwise, see the USGS National 

Map Viewer at viewer.nationalmap.gov/viewer. For guidance on creating inundation models in 

GIS software, see: NOAA. Detailed Methodology for Mapping Sea Level Rise Inundation. 2012. 

www.coast.noaa.gov/slr/assets/pdfs/Inundation_Methods.pdf. 

Storm Surge 

If the team can better understand and quantify the storm surge risk, it will have a more accurate 

picture of potential impacts to the community. The effect of climate change on the frequency and 

strength of coastal storms is somewhat dependent on regional location, but the team should keep 

in mind that sea level rise will add to the extent of storm surges. 

Along with the resources identified in the storm surge section of section 1 of this appendix, the 

National Hurricane Center provides several storm surge products for response, readiness, or 

planning and mitigation at www.nhc.noaa.gov/surge. The team can download the Maximum of 

MEOWs (MOMs), where “MEOWs” are maximum envelopes of water, at 

www.nhc.noaa.gov/surge/momOverview.php. The team can use these data in conjunction with 

the historical storm tracks to help determine for which category of storm the community should 

prepare and where the inundation would occur. If most of the storms in the region are category 3 

or below, consider looking at a category 4 inundation area for the late-century climate scenario. 

Drought 

The team can download downscaled climate precipitation and temperature data and analyze the 

trends. Consider reviewing consecutive dry days, number of days with temperatures over a 

critical value, and change in precipitation. Downscaled data for mid- and late-century climate 

scenarios are available at the Climate Wizard website and at the websites listed in Figure C-3. 

Extreme Heat 

The team can download downscaled climate temperature data and analyze the trends. Consider 

reviewing number of days with temperatures over a critical value, average temperatures shown 

seasonally, and change in maximum temperatures. Downscaled data for the mid- and late-
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

71

century climate scenarios are available at the Climate Wizard website and at the websites listed 

in Figure C-3.

3. Advanced Approach

Hazus is a free, nationally applicable standardized methodology that contains models for 

estimating potential losses from earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes.47 Hazus uses GIS 

technology to estimate physical, economic, and social impacts of disasters. It graphically 

illustrates the boundaries of locations at high risk from earthquakes, hurricanes, and floods. If the 

team is considering Hazus modeling to support vulnerability analysis, it should take the 

following steps: 

1. Identify exposure.

2. Determine sensitivity.

Step 1: Identify Exposure 

Riverine Flooding 

The team can use Hazus to model mid- and late-century riverine flood conditions using the 

USGS regression equations described in the Advanced GIS-Based section to estimate the future 

hydrology and the Hazus hydraulic model to delineate the flood plain. 

Run the Hazus model with the mid- and late-century 100- and 500-year peak flows to produce 

the corresponding flood plains. To do this, do not run the hydrology step in Hazus, but instead 

skip to Delineate flood plain and enter the peak flow values. Hazus will create the flood depth 

grid for this event, which can be used in step 1.4. Alternatively, run another hydraulic model 

with the results of the hydrologic model, and bring the results into Hazus. 

Coastal Flooding 

To use Hazus to assess future coastal flooding, the team would consider modeled precipitation, 

future storm events, sea level rise, and long-term erosion. All of these factors can help produce 

flood plains for mid- and late-century climate scenarios. To use Hazus for the analysis, the team 

can use the sea level rise analysis results from the moderate approach, a long-term erosion 

model, and the Hazus coastal flood model. 

The digital elevation model (DEM) used in the Hazus coastal model will need to incorporate 

rates of erosion if long-term shoreline erosion is an issue. Local erosion data are usually 

available from the state emergency management or coastal resources management agency. The 

team can use local erosion rates, with a focus on recent trends and corresponding sea level rise,

to model future erosion rates for mid- and late-century climate scenarios. If these data do not 

exist, this article describes different ways to model erosion due to sea level rise: Leatherman, 

Stephen P., Keqi Zhang, and Bruce C. Douglas. “Sea Level Rise Shown to Drive Coastal 

47 Hazus can be downloaded from FEMA’s Map Service Center at msc.fema.gov/portal/resources/hazus. This web 

page includes links to Hazus training and user groups. 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

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Erosion.” Eos. Vol. 81, No. 6. 2000:55-57. 

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/00EO00034/pdf. A DEM that has undergone erosion 

could be added to the Hazus model in the user data and DEM tabs. 

Another requirement to run the Hazus coastal model is the Flood Insurance Study (FIS), which 

can be downloaded at FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center at msc.fema.gov. The FIS provides 

the still water elevation (SWEL) for current return period events (e.g., 100- and 500-year events). 

The current SWEL should be added to the sea level rise estimate for the mid- and late-century 

climate scenarios to get the future SWEL. If the number of hurricanes, nor’easters, and other 

storms is expected to increase in the area, the sea level rise estimate can be added to the 500-year 

SWEL, which might better represent a late-century 100-year event. 

Run the Hazus model with the mid- and late-century SWELs and eroded DEM to get the flood 

depth grid for this event. 

Storm Surge 

To use Hazus to assess future storm surge, the team can consider future storm events, sea level 

rise, and long-term erosion. All of these factors can help produce inundation areas for mid- and 

late-century climate scenarios. To use Hazus to model future storm surge conditions, the team 

will need the sea level rise analysis results from the moderate approach for the mid- and latecentury climate scenarios, a long-term erosion model, and the Hazus surge model, which 

includes NOAA’s SLOSH and Delft University of Technology’s Simulating WAves Nearshore 

(SWAN) models. 

The DEM used in the Hazus storm surge model could incorporate rates of erosion if long-term 

shoreline erosion is an issue. Local erosion data are usually available from the state emergency 

management or coastal resources management agency. The team can use local erosion rates, with 

a focus on recent trends and corresponding sea level rise, to model future erosion rates for storm 

surge for mid- and late-century climate scenarios. If these data do not exist, the Eos article 

referenced under “Coastal Flooding” describes ways to model erosion due to sea level rise. A 

DEM that has undergone erosion could be added to the Hazus model in the user data and DEM 

tabs. 

The sea level rise for the mid- and late-century climate scenarios could be added to the water 

level boundary conditions at the beginning of the analysis. Historical events, “hurrevac” events 

(a hurricane decision support tool administered by FEMA, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 

and NOAA, available at www.hurrevac.com), and manual events can be modeled in Hazus. If 

the community is expecting more intense storms in the late-century climate scenario, increase the 

wind speeds of historical events or create a customized storm to reflect this change. The result of 

the analysis will be a storm surge inundation zone. 

Step 2: Determine Sensitivity 

Hazus can help support the potential impact analysis by producing a detailed loss estimate for 

future riverine and coastal flooding and storm surge. Because Hazus was created in a GIS-based 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy

73

environment, all of the outputs can be mapped to identify areas of higher risk. Once the team has 

set up the climate hazard as described in step 1 of this section (Identify Exposure), the team can 

simply run the analysis.

Hazus provides a set of community inventory data that communities should update with local 

GIS data. Demographic data, community assets, commercial and industrial values, utilities, 

bridges, agricultural products, building elevation values, and economic modeling parameters can

all be updated in Hazus’ Inventory. Once the hazard and inventory models have been set up, 

users can model and map the following in Hazus: 

 Economic loss including direct building loss and business interruption loss for each 

occupancy type, which provides losses at the census block level in flood plains and surge 

inundation areas.

 Utility and bridge damage, loss, and functionality, which provides damage, loss, and a 

yes/no functionality assessment at the site level.

 Community asset damage and loss, which estimates damage and loss at the site level.

 Debris estimates and costs to remove debris, which estimates building debris in different 

categories for floods and hurricanes and provides tree debris estimates for hurricanes.

 The number of displaced households, which provides the number of displaced households 

for floods and hurricanes.

 Shelter requirements, which provides short-term shelter requirements based on displaced 

households and demographic information.
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

74

Appendix D: Sample Economic Vulnerability 

Assessment Questions 

This appendix offers examples of questions a community assessment team could consider when 

examining the vulnerability of certain economic assets and their potential impact on the 

community. The team could select the most relevant questions and add to or modify them to 

reflect the size of the community, its major economic sectors, level of detail desired (e.g., a 

smaller village might examine impacts for individual parcels, whereas a regional assessment 

might focus on neighborhoods, corridors, or districts), and the goals the team selected for the 

economic assessment. The assets discussed in this appendix are: 

1. Transportation 

2. Utilities and Emergency Response Operations 

3. Industrial Operations 

4. Commercial Operations 

5. Agricultural Operations 

6. Natural Resources 

1. Transportation 

a. What are the major transportation network components in the community (e.g., roads; 

public transit such as buses, trains, subways, or streetcars; airport; bicycle and pedestrian 

trails, paths, and lanes; water-based transportation such as ferries and water taxis; or 

freight)? 

b. Who owns, operates, and maintains the transportation network components (e.g., the 

community, a transit authority, the state, or the federal government)? What is the 

geographic scale of each component? How many people does each component serve? Are 

there peak times of year for each component? How many people are employed by each 

component? 

c. What are the impacts of a changing climate on critical transportation network 

components? Consider incremental changes in climatic conditions (e.g., rising 

temperatures or changing rainfall patterns), increased extreme weather (e.g., heat waves, 

droughts, heavy downpours, floods, or storms), more permanent changes (e.g., sea level 

rise), and indirect implications (e.g., increased exposure to water or saltwater, soil 

erosion, or fires). Approximately what proportion of the transportation network 

components described in response to question 1a are vulnerable to these changes? 

Approximately what proportion of people using the transportation components could be 

affected by temporary shutdowns of the networks in these vulnerable areas? Have there 

already been extreme weather events that give some indication of potential economic 

consequences? Some specific examples: 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

75

i. Could disruption in the electrical grid due to high temperatures result in train 

delays or even a system shutdown? 

ii. Could damage from natural hazards or other climate-related impacts to train 

tracks, bridges, or the road system disrupt or shut down the entire network or 

significant portions of it? If so, are there alternative routes or transportation 

modes that could continue to provide access to key places? 

iii. Could weather-related damage to bicycle and pedestrian paths and trails and 

bicycle lanes prevent them from being used? Alternatively, could these routes 

continue to provide access if other routes or modes are blocked? 

d. Do residents rely on the public transit system to access employment outside of the 

community? Do businesses rely on it to bring their workers in? 

e. Does the public transit system serve multiple places in the community (to estimate the 

potential number of people and spatial area affected)? 

f. Of the transportation components in particularly vulnerable areas, which corridors or 

components are considered most important to the community’s economy? Consider 

connectivity to economic assets and areas that could be cut off, amount of traffic, portion 

of community residents, residents’ characteristics (e.g., income level, age, disability, or 

other factors that could make residents more vulnerable), and businesses affected (e.g., 

customers, employees, or distributors relying on the transportation component to reach 

the business).

g. What opportunities might there be to mitigate the various types of impacts from the 

climate change scenarios that were evaluated to the transportation components? Would 

these opportunities translate to new types of business for the community? 

h. Are there opportunities to make the transportation components more resilient to projected 

climate change impacts or to offer new transportation options that are more resilient? 

What economic opportunities (e.g., new businesses, products, or services) might be 

associated with these changes? 

2. Utilities and Emergency Response Operations 

a. What utilities serve the community (e.g., sewer, water, electricity, natural gas, telephone 

and cellphone, internet or Wi-Fi, or cable TV)? Who owns them? What percentage of the 

community consumes these utility services? 

b. What are the potential impacts of a changing climate on the utilities? Consider 

incremental changes in climatic conditions (e.g., rising temperatures and changing 

rainfall patterns), increases in extreme weather (e.g., heat waves, droughts, heavy 

downpours, floods, and storms), more permanent changes (e.g., sea level rise), and 

indirect implications (e.g., increased exposure to water or saltwater, wind damage, soil 

erosion, or fires). Approximately what proportion of the customers for the various 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

76

utilities are predicted to be affected in vulnerable areas? Have there already been extreme 

weather events that give some indication of potential economic consequences? 

c. Do any of the utilities need cooling to function and would loss of cooling result in 

damage to other systems and potentially inability to operate? 

d. Does each utility have redundant power sources? Does the need for a redundant power 

source create economic opportunities? 

e. How do these utilities relate to other major assets in the community? 

i. Are there operations that use a significant amount of electricity? 

ii. Are there operations that use a significant amount of potable water for drinking, 

cleaning, swimming, or other uses? 

iii. Are there operations that use a significant amount of natural gas? 

iv. Are there commercial or industrial operations that use large amounts of certain 

utilities (e.g., water or electricity)? 

v. Are there critical community assets (e.g., hospitals) that require an uninterrupted 

supply of electricity, natural gas, and/or potable water? 

f. Have any of the utilities implemented any mitigation or resilience measures to eliminate

or reduce harm from climate change impacts? What business opportunities might these 

strategies create? 

g. Where are critical fire, police, medical, and other emergency response facilities located? 

How much area does each facility cover? 

h. In the event of an emergency, can emergency response personnel get to and from the 

critical facilities? 

3. Industrial Operations 

a. What industrial operations are located in the community? Are they locally, regionally, 

nationally, or internationally owned, and what is the scale of their operations? What is the 

estimated number of employees? Approximately what proportion of the local tax base do 

industrial operations comprise? 

b. What are the potential impacts of a changing climate on industrial operations? Consider 

incremental changes in climatic conditions (e.g., rising temperatures and changing 

rainfall patterns), increases in extreme weather (e.g., heat waves, droughts, heavy 

downpours, floods, and storms), more permanent changes (e.g., sea level rise), and 

indirect implications (e.g., increased exposure to water or saltwater, wind damage, soil 

erosion, or fires). Approximately what proportion of the total number of industrial 

employees or tax base could be affected by impacts to industries in these vulnerable 

areas? Have there already been extreme weather events that give some indication of 

potential economic consequences? 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

77

c. What are the potential impacts of a changing climate on the transport and logistics of 

industrial products? What connected businesses might be affected (e.g., transporters, 

warehouses, retailers, or end users)?

d. Do the industrial operations depend on water supplies for their operations? 

i. If significant, what is the risk of a reduction in available water? 

ii. Are the industrial operations served by public or private water supplies? 

iii. What opportunities might there be to improve water efficiency or use alternative 

water sources? Is there an opportunity for new businesses to meet this need? 

e. What is the approximate (rough order of magnitude) potential value of the industrial 

products that are produced or stored on-site that could be lost due to projected climate 

impacts for the scenarios evaluated? 

f. Do any parts of the operation take place outside and, if so, might they be directly affected 

by weather? Could extreme heat or severe storms negatively affect the operation’s 

products or supplies stored outside? What alternative types of operations might be 

economically successful under the changed conditions (i.e., reflecting changes in 

preferences and material needs)? 

g. Do industrial operations’ employees work outside? Will extreme heat negatively affect 

employees and prevent them from effectively and efficiently completing their work? 

h. Are there strategies to reduce or eliminate impacts of climate change? What business 

opportunities might these strategies create? 

4. Commercial Operations 

a. What primary types of commercial operations are located in the community? Are they 

locally, regionally, nationally, or internationally owned, and how does their scale relate to 

the community’s economy? Approximately what proportion of the local tax base do 

commercial operations comprise? 

b. What are the potential impacts of a changing climate on preparation, transportation, 

and/or delivery of the products produced at these operations? Consider incremental 

changes in climatic conditions (e.g., rising temperatures and changing rainfall patterns), 

increases in extreme weather (e.g., heat waves, droughts, heavy downpours, floods, and 

storms), more permanent changes (e.g., sea level rise), and indirect implications (e.g., 

increased exposure to water or saltwater, wind damage, soil erosion, or fires). 

Approximately what proportion of the total number of employees work for commercial 

operations in these vulnerable areas, and what is the approximate collective local tax base 

for those vulnerable operations? Have there already been extreme weather events that 

give some indication of potential economic consequences? 

c. Do the commercial operations depend on water supplies for their operations? 

i. If significant, what is the risk of a reduction in available water? 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

78

ii. Are the commercial operations served by public or private water supplies? 

iii. What opportunities might there be to improve water efficiency or use alternative 

water sources? Is there an opportunity for new businesses to meet this need? 

d. Do the commercial operations depend on cooling systems to function effectively or at 

all—for example, to make, store, or preserve their product or for operations (e.g., ice 

rink, restaurants, offices, retail)? If the need for cooling is significant, do the operations 

need it for customers or the production of goods and products, and what is the 

approximate potential for cost of repairing damages and lost revenue? 

e. What are the potential impacts of a changing climate on the transportation and logistics of 

commercial products produced on site? What connected businesses might be affected 

(e.g., transporters, warehouses, retailers, or end users)?

f. What is the approximate (rough order of magnitude) potential value of the commercial 

products that are either produced or stored on site that could be lost due to projected 

climate impacts? 

g. Are there strategies to reduce or eliminate climate change impacts? What business 

opportunities might these strategies bring? 

h. Do the commercial operations involve activities outside? Would the projected climate 

change impacts affect these outside activities? Could extreme heat negatively affect the 

operation? What alternative types of operations might be economically successful under 

the changed conditions (i.e., reflecting changes in preferences or consumer product or 

service needs)? 

i. Do the commercial operations’ employees work outside? Will extreme heat negatively 

affect employees and prevent them from effectively and efficiently completing their work? 

5. Agricultural Operations 

a. What is the total number of these operations in the community? What is the estimated 

number of employees for each? Consider breaking down the total numbers by the type of 

operation (e.g., livestock, crops, or nurseries), as each type might be affected differently 

by climate-related impacts. 

b. What are the impacts of a changing climate on primary types of livestock, crops, or 

nurseries in the community? Consider incremental changes in climatic conditions (e.g., 

rising temperatures or changing rainfall patterns), increases in extreme weather (e.g., heat 

waves, droughts, heavy downpours, flooding, or storms), more permanent changes (e.g., 

sea level rise), and indirect implications (e.g., increased exposure to water or saltwater, 

wind damage, soil erosion, or fires). Approximately what proportion of agricultural 

operations are located in the vulnerable areas? Do agricultural extension experts have 

insight as to how these changes could potentially affect agricultural economic factors 

such as yield reliability, quality, and price? Have there already been extreme weather 

events that give some indication of potential economic consequences? 
Planning Framework for a Climate-Resilient Economy 

79

c. How dependent are the community’s agricultural and landscaping operations on a reliable 

freshwater supply? What is the risk of a reduction in available water? What opportunities 

might there be to improve water efficiency or use alternative water sources? 

d. What is the approximate (rough order of magnitude) potential value of agricultural or 

landscaping products that could be lost due to projected climate impacts? 

e. What are the potential impacts of a changing climate on transportation and logistics of 

agricultural and nursery products? What connected businesses might be affected (e.g., 

transporters, warehouses, or retailers)? 

f. What opportunities might there be to test new strains of crops or animals in the most 

vulnerable product lines or regions of agricultural and landscaping operations in the 

community? 

6. Natural Resources 

a. What are the major natural resource network components in the community (e.g., 

streams, rivers, flood plains, lakes, coastal areas, parks, street trees, greenways, and 

forests and silviculture areas)? 

b. What are the potential impacts of a changing climate on these natural resources? 

Consider incremental changes in climatic conditions (e.g., rising temperatures and

changing rainfall patterns), increases in extreme weather (e.g., heat waves, droughts, 

heavy downpours, floods, and storms), more permanent changes (e.g., sea level rise), and 

indirect implications (e.g., increased exposure to water or saltwater, wind damage, soil 

erosion, or fires).

c. Do industrial or agricultural operations depend on these resources as water supplies for 

their operations (e.g., direct withdrawals of water), particularly in meeting certain water 

quantity or quality requirements? 

i. If significant, what is the risk of a reduction in available water or reduced water 

quality? 

ii. What opportunities might there be to improve water efficiency or use alternative 

water sources? 

d. What connected local businesses might be affected by impacts on these natural resources 

(other than water supply)? What is the approximate (rough order of magnitude) potential 

loss to these businesses? Businesses outside the community? 

e. What is the approximate (rough order of magnitude) potential value of the natural 

resource ecosystem functions (e.g., floodwater storage, carbon sequestration, cooling, or 

water supply) that could be lost due to projected climate impacts? 

f. Are there strategies to reduce or eliminate climate change impacts? What business 

opportunities might these strategies bring? Consider breaking this down by different 

natural resource elements, then considering the elements as a whole.