Assessing Site-level Climate Change Impacts
Purpose:
This session provides resources to assess the impacts of climate change on your project area and determine the feasibility of current stewardship given site vulnerability and climate-related challenges and opportunities.
Session Topics:
- How to assess vulnerability at your site using regional climate change resources
- Overview of adaptation menus of strategies and approaches
- Site visit assignment
Presentation materials:
LTA Short Course 2024_Lecture2.pdf
List of resources shared during Lecture 2
Assignment Week 2
Please complete before the next session
Read and review
(Select relevant readings appropriate for your region)
- Review climate observations and projections for your region in the (2023) 5th National Climate Assessment
- Climate Resources- Canada (eastern provinces)
Review forest and ecosystem climate vulnerability resources :
- Urban Forest Vulnerability - Multiple cities across the nation
- Interactive viewer (national) Climate Impacts Explorer
- Wetlands vulnerability resources
- Forest vulnerability - Midwest and Northwoods
- Forest vulnerability - New England & New York
- Forest vulnerability - Mid-Atlantic region
- Forest vulnerability - Central Hardwoods region
- Additional USDA Climate Hub assessments
Prepare for the field visit
- Select a property/project area to use for your field activity.
- Download or print the worksheets at the end of the Quick Guide to Adaptation Planning for Land Trusts for your field activity/visit.
- Download or print adaptation menus that may be relevant to your project
- When ready to go into the field review week 3 assignment details.
Optional/background readings
- As needed: View the education modules on climate change science and modeling, and climate change effects on forests and grasslands.
- Read the Northern Woodlands article on forest carbon management
- Learn more about the Landowner scorecards
- Demonstration project described in lecture (Step 3 example): Audubon Vermont: Green Mountain Audubon Center
- Reach out to instructors to find a time to discuss your project/questions.
More resources for advanced uses:
- Future projected growing degree days, heat, and hardiness zones
- USDA Forest Service Tree Atlas
- Climate Mapping for Resilience & Adaptation
- Seedlot selection tool designed to help forest managers match seedlots with planting sites based on climatic information
- Climate Toolbox A collection of web tools for visualizing past and projected climate and hydrology of the contiguous United States
Contact Us
Please contact the facilitators of this training with any questions:
Mattison Brady, Samantha Myers, Danielle Shannon