U.S. Department of Justice Climate Change Adaptation Plan

Posted on: 1/12/2016 - Updated on: 2/27/2020

Posted by

Tera Johnson

Abstract

This document presents the Department of Justice (DOJ) Climate Change Adaptation Plan (also referred to as the “Adaptation Plan”), to be submitted to the White House Council on Environmental Quality as part of the DOJ 2014 Strategic Sustainability Performance Plan and implemented throughout DOJ in FY 2014 and beyond. DOJ, along with other Federal agencies, is required to comply with the climate resiliency directives under Executive Order (EO) 13514, Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance (2009) and EO 13653, Preparing the United States for the Impacts of Climate Change (2013).

In accordance with these requirements, this Adaptation Plan presents DOJ’s climate change policy framework, summarizes the results of the agency’s high-level vulnerability analysis, describes the overall process envisioned for preparedness planning and evaluation, and identifies specific actions for increasing climate resilience. The Adaptation Plan includes a detailed discussion of the programmatic activities and actions the agency intends to pursue to both better understand and address climate change risks and opportunities in FY 2014 and beyond. These actions align with the four major climate change vulnerabilities identified by DOJ in the 2012 U.S. Department of Justice Climate Change Adaptation Plan: 1) physical damage to buildings, utilities infrastructure, and assets; 2) health impacts to personnel; 3) disruption of operations resulting from potential unrest among affected populations; and 4) depletion of fiscal resources.