This page provides an overview of the steps California is taking to prepare for the impacts of climate change.

California is engaged in both directly planning for climate impacts and incorporating climate adaptation into its existing policies and programs. On November 14, 2008, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger called on the California Natural Resources Agency (CNRA) to develop a state Climate Adaptation Strategy in coordination with public and private entities at the local, regional, state and federal levels (Executive Order S-13-08). CNRA organized state agencies into seven resource-based sector working groups. Each working group identified both short- and long-term adaptation goals and a process for reporting on progress.

In December 2009, the state released a comprehensive statewide Climate Adaptation Strategy (“2009 Plan”). The 2009 Plan summarizes climate change impacts and recommends adaptation goals for seven sectors: public health, biodiversity and habitat, oceans and coastal resources, water, agriculture, forestry, and transportation and energy.

CNRA released an update to the 2009 Plan in July 2014, Safeguarding California: Reducing Climate Risk: An Update to the California Climate Adaptation Strategy (“2014 Safeguarding Plan”), in coordination with other state agencies. The 2014 update highlights progress the state has made toward the goals identified in the 2009 Plan, and it includes new and refined adaptation goals for the state. 

In 2015, the state legislature enacted AB 1482, which requires the California Natural Resources Agency and Strategic Growth Council to coordinate and oversee state efforts to prepare for the impacts of climate change and to update the state’s adaptation plan every three years (codifying requirements previously called for by Executive Order B-30-15). The law also calls on state agencies to educate the public about the impacts of climate change; provide a repository of scientific data on climate change; promote the use of climate information in planning and state investment decisions; use natural features and ecosystem restoration approaches for adapting to the impacts of climate change, when feasible; promote regional collaborative planning efforts; and promote drought resilience through integrated water management approaches.

To comply with the mandate to update the state’s adaptation plan every three years, California released the Safeguarding California Plan: 2018 Update in January 2018 (“2018 Safeguarding Plan”). The 2018 update details the progress the state has made in implementing previous plans and presents action items for furthering state progress on adaptation.

To facilitate implementation of state adaptation plans, the California Natural Resources Agency developed planning documents and draft regulations on state requirements for addressing climate change impacts in 2016. Sector-specific implementation action plans were used to document state progress and further implementation of the 2014 Safeguarding Plan. In 2017, the California Governor’s Office of Planning and Research also developed a Guidebook for state agencies providing a step-by-step process for integrating considerations of climate change in state planning and investment decisions. Additionally, California state agencies coordinate implementation of the state's adaptation plans through Climate Action Teams (CATs). CATs developed implementation plans, which establish responsible agencies, timelines for completion, and strategies for measuring progress.

Vulnerability Assessments

The state also conducts periodic statewide assessments of climate impacts and vulnerabilities (as required by Executive Order S-03-05). The fourth climate change assessment was released on August 27, 2018 and includes 44 technical reports (on projected impacts to specific sectors and potential responses), 30 summary reports, 9 regional reports, and 3 statewide topical reports (on oceans and coasts, tribal and indigenous communities, and environmental justice impacts of climate change). The third assessment, Our Changing Climate 2012: Vulnerability & Adaptation to the Increasing Risks of Climate Change in California, was released in July 2012. Through the climate assessment process the state explores local, regional and statewide vulnerabilities to climate change and highlights opportunities to take concrete action to reduce climate change impacts. State agencies and outside experts work to produce peer-reviewed scientific research on potential impacts to a range of sectors: energy, water, agriculture, public health, coasts, transportation, and ecological resources, among others.

To advance the science and inform statewide assessments, state agencies periodically develop research plans to identify gaps and funding priorities for climate change research. In July 2014, the Research Working Group Climate Action Team released a draft Climate Change Research Plan that presents state research priorities for the next three to five years.

Climate information and data is made available from previous climate assessments through the California Climate Portal and the Cal-Adapt website. The state also maintains a catalog of climate change research funded by the state that is updated annually. The California Environmental Protection Agency and the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment have also developed and are tracking 36 indicators to evaluate trends in climate change and impacts to the state’s environment and populations. In May 2018, the state released an updated Indicators of Climate Change 2018 report, reporting on the climate impacts that are already occurring across the state across the 36 indicators that the state monitors.

State Legislation

In addition to AB 1482, the state legislature has passed a variety of other laws to require adaptation planning at the state and local levels, to provide funding and financing options to support adaptation planning and investments, and to require adaptation efforts in specific sectors (Details of these requirements are described on the “State Agency Action Overview” page.).

In 2008, SB 732 created the Strategic Growth Council to support regional and local land-use planning, with the goals of promoting water conservation, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, encouraging infill development, conserving natural resources and agricultural lands, and increasing adaptability to climate change. The Council’s role in promoting and funding adaptation efforts was further expanded in 2010, with the passage of SB 1006.

State legislation affecting the state’s adaptation efforts (described in more detail on the “Supporting Local Actions” page), include: AB 2800 (2016) calling for the creation of the climate-safe infrastructure working group; SB 246 (2015) creating the Integrated Climate Adaptation and Resilience Program; SB 379 (2015) requiring local governments to include consideration of climate impacts in local land-use plans (or general plans); and SB 1000 (2016) requiring consider of environmental justice in local land-use plans.

The Global Warming Solutions Act designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions has been amended to promote adaptation efforts as well. In September 2012, SB 535 directed that a portion of proceeds from the state’s cap-and-trade program benefit disadvantaged communities, including investments in affordable housing near transit, weatherization of homes, renewable energy, and urban forestry. The law also called for the development of the CalEnviroScreen tool to identify disadvantaged communities for investment opportunities. In September 2016, AB 1550 — the Climate Investments for California Communities Act — required additional investment (at least 25 percent of cap-and-trade proceeds) to benefit disadvantaged and low-income communities. In 2017, the legislature passed AB 398, with a two-thirds majority, extending the state’s cap-and-trade program and allowing for auction proceeds to be used to advance climate adaptation and resiliency. Climate adaptation initiatives were also included in the 2017 update to the Scoping Plan developed by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to direct cap-and-trade revenues. The 2017 scoping plan identifies potential uses for cap-and-trade revenues including: addressing health inequities, enhancing the resilience and potential for sequestration of agricultural and working lands, reducing emissions from and enhancing the resilience of the agricultural sector, enhancing carbon sequestration and the resilience of forests and urban forests, and enhancing drought resilience.

Other Statewide Actions and Initiatives

The 2009 Plan recommended that the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) guidelines be updated to require state agencies to consider climate impacts to state actions in environmental analyses. In December 2009, the California Governor's Office of Planning and Research (OPR) finalized amendments to the guidelines for completing environmental impact assessments as required by CEQA. Section 15126.2 of CEQA directs public agencies to "evaluate any potentially significant impacts of locating development in other areas susceptible to hazardous conditions (e.g., floodplains, coastlines, wildfire risk areas) as identified in authoritative hazard maps, risk assessments or in land use plans addressing such hazards areas.”

The 2009 Plan also recommended establishment of a Climate Adaptation Advisory Panel (CAAP) to gather input from business and private sector stakeholders to help the state prioritize state adaptation actions. CAAP convened in December 2009 and included prominent business, labor, government, and private sector leaders. CAAP released its report, Preparing for the Effects of Climate Change -— A Strategy for California, in November 2010. The CAAP report recommends that the state create a Climate Risk Council to assess climate risks to the state and advise public entities on how to carry out long-term projects to adapt to future risk and coordinate with other state and local actors. The report further recommends that the state include adaptation goals in local sustainability plans required by SB 375, explore ways to create local or regional climate adaptation funds, and study insurance approaches to promote adaptation, among other recommendations.

In 2016, the state also convened a Climate Justice Working Group, which included representatives from environmental justice, public health, and climate equity organizations. The Working Group developed recommendations for ensuring that the 2018 update to the state’s Safeguarding Plan adequately addressed considerations of equity in its report, Advancing Climate Justice in California: Guiding Principles and Recommendations for Policy and Funding Decisions.

As part of the launch of the 2018 Safeguarding Plan, the state also announced the creation of a Cultural Resources Climate Change Task Force tasked with developing a Cultural Resources Climate Change Strategic Plan to develop strategies for consulting with California Native American Tribes and historic preservation officers around the preservation, protection, and adaptation of cultural resources vulnerable to impacts from climate change.

These pages highlight the progress California is making to implement the goals set forth in its adaptation plans and in other state initiatives. Other resources from the Adaptation Clearinghouse, which have been developed and adopted to help California prepare for the impacts of climate change, are featured in the chart below.

The Georgetown Climate Center’s State Adaptation Progress Tracker, which tracks the progress states are making in implementing adaptation plans, was supported by the MacArthur Foundation. 

(Research last updated: August 1, 2018).