From Planning to Action: Implementation of State Climate Change Adaptation Plans

Aaron D. Ray and Jessica Grannis
Posted on: 10/26/2021 - Updated on: 8/23/2022

Posted by

Kathryn Braddock

Published

Abstract

States are using climate change adaptation plans to prepare for the impacts of climate change. As of October 2014, 14 states had finalized state-led adaptation plans. An additional eight states and the District of Columbia had some adaptation planning underway. The Georgetown Climate Center is tracking implementation of these plans and making these data available to scholars, practitioners, and the public through an interactive tool in the Climate Center’s Adaptation Clearinghouse. This research provides, for the first time, an empirical assessment of the progress that states are making implementing their adaptation plans. Among states with plans, there is significant variation in the number of goals included in each plan, the sectors covered, and the degree of implementation that has occurred. The number of discrete goals in state plans ranges from 28 to 373, and the level of implementation progress ranges from 16 to 87%. Our research demonstrates that states are actively implementing the goals in their adaptation plans, but the process of plan development and the progress in implementation are highly state specific.

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