2017 Articles

Planning for the Effects of Climate Change on Natural Resources

Wentz, Jessica A.

This article, published in the Environmental Law Reporter, examines how the federal agencies that manage natural resources and public lands can account for the current and future impacts of climate change in their management activities. It finds that the federal agencies responsible for managing these resources have generally recognized that considerations pertaining to climate change adaptation should be incorporated into existing planning processes, yet this topic is still treated as an afterthought in many planning documents. Only a few federal agencies have published guidance on how managers should consider climate change impacts and their management implications. This Article explains why these agencies are legally required to consider climate-related risks in planning processes, and presents recommendations and a model protocol for conducting this analysis.