California adaptation planning guide

The California Adaptation Planning Guide (APG), a set of four complementary documents, provides guidance to support communities in addressing the unavoidable consequences of climate change. The APG introduces the basis for climate change adaptation planning and details a step-by-step process for local and regional climate vulnerability assessment and adaptation strategy development. It presents the following five vulnerability assessment steps:

Step 1. Exposure: What climate change effects will a community experience?
Step 2. Sensitivity: What aspects of a community (functions, structures, and populations) will be affected?
Step 3. Potential Impacts: How will climate change affect the points of sensitivity?
Step 4. Adaptive Capacity: What is or can be currently done to address the impacts?
Step 5. Risk and Onset: How likely are the impacts and how quickly will they occur?

, and four adaptation strategy development steps:

Step 6. Prioritize Adaptive Needs: Which impacts require actions to address them?
Step 7. Identify Strategies: Which strategies should be pursued to address adaptation needs?
Step 8. Evaluate and Prioritize Strategies: Which strategies should be implemented first?
Step 9. Phase and Implement: How can the strategies be funded, staffed, and monitored?

In addition, APG provides a more in-depth understanding of how climate change can affect a community and includes seven “impact sectors” to support communities conducting a climate vulnerability assessment. It also identifies climate impact regions in California, including their environmental and socioeconomic characteristics, and explores potential adaptation strategies that communities can use to meet adaptation needs.