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State Needs Strategic Plan For Climate Change

A new report looks at how prepared California is for the predicted effects of climate change. Those effects range from sea level rise to droughts, heat waves and wildfires. KPBS Environmental Reporter

State Needs Strategic Plan For Climate Change

A new report looks at how prepared California is for the predicted effects of climate change. Those effects range from sea level rise to droughts, heat waves and wildfires. KPBS Environmental Reporter Ed Joyce has details.

The Public Policy Institute of California says the state needs an integrated plan to prepare for climate changes that will affect the economy, environment and the daily lives of residents.

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PPIC research fellow Louise Bedsworth co-authored the study.

She says habitat protection is one example of how planning now can prevent future species extinction.

Bedsworth: We're making planning decisions today that affect species and how species can move around. And that's going to change over time as the climate changes. So if we don't start thinking about it today, we're going to have a lot more difficult problem to deal with down the road.

The report says some state institutions, such as water agencies, are doing more to prepare for climate change than others.

But Bedsworth says more preparation is needed in other areas - including flood management, ecosystem conservation, public health, and air quality planning.

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Ed Joyce, KPBS News.