Arizona and New Mexico will gain $3.5 million in grants from N.O.A.A. over 5 years to help them prepare for and adapt to climate variability and change. 7 smaller grants for one- and two-year plans were also awarded this week.
The Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments (RISA) funds will go toward plans such as helping New Mexico departments of health and environment to research whether dust levels in a changing climate will affect valley fever, a regional infectious pulmonary disease. The grants will also help drought agencies in both states incorporate climate information into their planning and implementation.
"The southwest U.S. has the fastest growing population in the nation, yet cities and tribal lands in Arizona and New Mexico are severely affected by drought. These plans will help people understand and make decisions to minimize the risks associated with changing water resources and other challenges posed by a changing climate," said Richard D. Rosen, acting director of NOAA's Climate Plan Office. "NOAA's smaller awards focused on partnerships between RISA teams and other research and decision making institutions are a valuable mechanism for regional coordination."
RISA, a Plan of the Climate Plan Office within NOAA's Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, enables local-level interdisciplinary research needed to tackle big challenges such as impacts to water, food, infrastructure, and ecosystems. The Plan strengthens NOAA's climate efforts by bringing academic and federal science and service communities together.
The RISA award in the southwest goes to the Climate Assessment for the Southwest (CLIMAS), a research consortium at the universities of Arizona and New Mexico. CLIMAS projects to advance long-standing collaborations with water utilities, state and local governments, land and wildlife managers, extension services, nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector. Its work addresses regional water sustainability, the intersection of climate and human health, economic tradeoffs and opportunities related to water, and socially vulnerable populations.
"The approach we've developed over our 14-year partnership with N.O.A.A. has been to work closely with the people of the southwest to identify and address research questions that are important to the region," said Daniel Ferguson, CLIMAS Plan director. "This approach ensures our work is timely and relevant for public and private sector stakeholders throughout the region so they have the best information accessible to make vital resource allocation and planning decisions."
N.O.A.A. also announced 7 multi-year awards totalling $600,000 to existing RISA research teams to encourage collaboration with federal and non-federal partners on climate adaptation. Award funds for years 2 and beyond are subject to the availability of yearly appropriations.
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Mark Shafer, University of Oklahoma, Southern Climate Impacts Planning Program, water reservoir data visualization tools: $44,000
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Denise Lach, Oregon State University, Climate Impacts Research Consortium, building organizational capacity to adapt to climate change on public lands in the Pacific Northwest: $118,943
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Victoria Keener, East West Center - Pacific RISA, mapping the flow of climate and water information in the Pacific Islands: $87,395
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Wendy Graham, University of Florida, Southeast Climate Consortium, use of seasonal climate forecasts to minimize short-term operational risks for water supply and ecosystem restoration: $73,737
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Michael Crimmins, University of Arizona, CLIMAS, climate and weather services for disaster management: $82,630
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Casey Brown, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Consortium for Climate Risk in the Urban Northwest, water management knowledge network for the northeastern U.S.: $99,582
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William Travis, University of Colorado, Western Water Assessment, building climate science into land and water conservation planning/decision making in the southwest: $99,543
RISA teams are part of NOAA's regional climate services partnerships, which include state climate offices and NOAA's
National Integrated Drought Information System, Regional Climate Service Directors, and Regional Climate Centers. The 7 new awards to RISA teams will help federal and non-federal partners better use climate information within their own structure.
These awards were coordinated with the interagency U.S. Global Change Research Program, which leads the US National Climate Assessment. For example, the Pacific Islands RISA will work with the Pacific Islands Department of the Interior Climate Science Center to map the flow of climate and water information throughout stakeholder networks in that region.
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