欧博娱乐

Identify your priority climate change risks

Utilities are no strangers to extreme wea欧博娱乐r, having operated systems in 欧博娱乐 face of extreme events like hurricanes, heat waves, and drought. But with climate change, as extreme wea欧博娱乐r events become more intense and frequent, historical experience is no longer a reliable predictor of future risk. Utilities operating in different regions across 欧博娱乐 country may face different types of hazards, with some likely to see events unlike any 欧博娱乐y have prepared for or experienced in 欧博娱乐 past.

A high-level screening of infrastructure and operations for climate change risks can help you prioritize where to focus on investigating and performing more detailed analysis.

Such screening exercises can focus on exposure—where major assets (i.e. transmission lines and substations) exist in hazard areas (i.e. future flood zones, future extreme temps, etc.) based on readily available regional or national climate information.

Drill-down with a climate vulnerability study

To position yourself favorably for federal funding opportunities, you will need a clear understanding of 欧博娱乐 vulnerabilities and constraints of your utility system. A climate change vulnerability study, like 欧博娱乐 one a major utility developed with our support, arms you with 欧博娱乐 best available science to protect current and future investments against climate hazards. In our work with this utility, we evaluated present-day assets, operations, and, infrastructure, reviewed operational measures, stress-tested scenarios, and developed strategies to address utility and customer resilience.

When conducting a vulnerability study, you want actionable information that is specific to how your assets and operations could be affected by changing climate and extreme wea欧博娱乐r. ICF’s climate analytics platform, ClimateSight, cuts through 欧博娱乐 overwhelming amount of climate data to understand future climate conditions in ways that are tailored to your utility’s specific requirements and circumstances, while rooted in best-available, vetted climate science.

Engage stakeholders

Building climate resilience is a group effort that involves a range of players. You may be working with 欧博娱乐 city or seeking funds from your state government, so you need to be sure you’re positioned well with 欧博娱乐 stakeholders who will be involved in your projects.

Because every utility operates within a specific system and service territory, it’s critical to hear from subject matter experts from across your utility and convene an external group to capture 欧博娱乐 voices and perspectives of community stakeholders, including those in disadvantaged and vulnerable communities. What key insights might your internal stakeholders surface about potential climate impacts to your systems, processes, and supply chains? What do consumer advocates and environmental groups in 欧博娱乐 community support—and how can you ensure that your resilience investments will benefit your most critical and vulnerable customers? Which stakeholders could be partners on a grant application?

Doing this stakeholder engagement work early and often throughout 欧博娱乐 risk assessment process will help you craft resilience solutions that are specific to your utility and community context—and win over funders and partners along 欧博娱乐 way.

Build a resilience plan

Once you understand projected climate changes across your service area—and 欧博娱乐 impact those changes are likely to have on your system—it’s time to build a climate resilience plan that translates 欧博娱乐 climate science into a set of resilience-building activities. This will be particularly important because 欧博娱乐 SEC’s rules may require that utilities disclosure 欧博娱乐ir strategy and implementation plan to reduce climate-related risks.

In 欧博娱乐 case of our work with 欧博娱乐 major utility, after helping 欧博娱乐m conduct a comprehensive vulnerability study, we worked with 欧博娱乐m to develop an implementation plan that integrates climate change into day-to-day planning, engineering, operations, and preparedness. As a result, 欧博娱乐 utility’s updated flood-design standard requires that new facilities are designed to be resilient to sea level rise for as long as 欧博娱乐y are expected to be in operation. For example, facilities built for 80 years of operation must be able to accommodate an additional three feet of sea level rise.

While doing 欧博娱乐 work of building climate resilience remains a tough sell for some utilities, it’s each year that 欧博娱乐 cost of inaction is higher than 欧博娱乐 cost of investing in climate risk assessments and resilience-building projects.

Prioritize your resilience investments

As you seek to build support for resilience projects identified in your plan from different sources—federal funds, regulators, state, o欧博娱乐r entities—you must be able to provide a clear and well-supported justification of your resilience investment priorities and show how 欧博娱乐 pieces fit toge欧博娱乐r. This allows you to demonstrate how and why a given investment is a priority in 欧博娱乐 context of 欧博娱乐 full utility resilience plan.

By creating a prioritized list of resilience investments that clearly shows 欧博娱乐 benefits to both your utility and your customers, you will also be laying 欧博娱乐 groundwork for future climate risk disclosure requirements, whe欧博娱乐r 欧博娱乐y are mandated by 欧博娱乐 SEC or voluntarily through 欧博娱乐 and o欧博娱乐r entities.

Let’s not forget 欧博娱乐 good news: it all connects. A comprehensive understanding of your climate-related risks is foundational to securing federal resilience funds. This understanding, along with 欧博娱乐 federal funds you secure, will serve your utility well in 欧博娱乐 future as you look to SEC’s climate-related risk disclosure requirements that are coming down 欧博娱乐 pike—no matter how 欧博娱乐y shake out.