Vo         CHECKLIST:
       	      S        How to Address Changing Climate Concerns  in
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Our climate is changing and we need to adapt to make sure our cleanups are still protective of
human health and the environment now and into the future. To ensure that cleanups remain
effective as the climate changes, EPA has added a new term and condition starting in the FY13
Cleanup and Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) grants that requires recipients to "evaluate the resilience
of the remedial options in light of reasonably foreseeable changing climate conditions (e.g., sea
level rise,  increased frequency and intensity of flooding and/or extreme weather events, etc.)."

An Analysis of Brownfield Cleanup Alternatives (ABCA) typically includes sections describing
the background and current conditions of the site (maps, previous uses, assessment findings,
reuse goals), applicable regulations and cleanup standards, an evaluation of cleanup alternatives
and a recommended remedial action. The evaluation of cleanup alternatives is based on the
effectiveness, ease of implementation and cost of each remedial action.

As directed under EPAs Climate Change Adaptation Plan, the ABCA must also include a discussion
of observed and forecasted climate change conditions for the area of the project and the
associated site-specific risk factors. Examples of changing climate conditions include, but are not
limited to:

•  Increased/decreased temperatures           •  Rising sea level
•  Increased/decreased precipitation            •  Changing flood zones
•  Extreme weather events (e.g., storms of       •  Changing environmental/ecological zones
   unusual intensity, increased frequency and     .  |ncreased sa,t water intrusion
   intensity of localized flooding events)
                                            •  Higher/lower groundwater tables
•  Increased risk of wildfires
•  Changing dates for ground thaw/freezing
Identified climate change conditions and risk factors should then be considered in the evaluation of
cleanup alternatives. Both current and forecasted climate changes may impact the effectiveness of
a remedial alternative (e.g., increased flooding of a site could compromise an engineered cap) and
should be considered in the effectiveness portion of the ABCA.

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Considerations to think about when addressing climate adaptation in the ABCA:

Q  Review an authoritative resource (e.g., USGS Web site, state or local resources) to identify
    observed and potential changing climate conditions for the area in which the cleanup project
    is located.
Q  Given the pertinent climate change concerns, identify the site-specific risk factors, taking into
    account known conditions (e.g., proximity to the ocean, property affected by a revised FEMA
    flood plain map, infrastructure vulnerabilities, vulnerability of soil type due to moisture and
    hydraulic changes, ground and surface drinking water vulnerabilities).
Q  Include in your  effectiveness evaluation how well each alternative can accommodate the
    identified climate change risk factors. Remember to consider all stages of the cleanup and
    long-term reuse of the site.

Note: EPA does not  expect grant recipients to generate new site-specific climate change
measurements to complete this analysis. Through the ABCA, grant recipients must demonstrate
they have reviewed  available current and authoritative information for the cleanup analysis. The
level of analysis expected depends on the complexity of the project and the degree of risk involved
given the feasible remedial options and targeted reuse of the site.

Examples of Federal Resources to Identify Current and Potential Changing
Climate Conditions:

Climate Resources on Data.gov: http://www.data.gov/climate/

U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP):
http://www.globalchange.gov/resources/federal-agency-adaptation-planning-resources

USGS Climate Land  Change Science Program: http://www.usgs.gov/climatejanduse/lcs/

EPA Web site: http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/

Tool Kits for Public Officials:
http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/impacts-adaptation/adapt-tools.html

Office of Water's Stormwater Calculator Climate Assessment Tool:
http://www.epa.gov/nrmrl/wswrd/wq/models/swc/

Federal Government Web site: https://www.fedcenter.gov/programs/climate/

FEMA Map Service Center:
https://msc.fema.gov/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/FemaWelcomeView?storeld=10001&cata-
logld=10001&langld=-1
                                                                          EPA 560-Q-14-001
                                                                               April 2014

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