Sustainable New Jersey Climate Change Adaptation Task Force

http://www.sustainablejersey.com/fileadmin/media/Media___Publications/Publications/2011-09-26_SJ_CATF_CC_Impacts_Summary_final.pdf

Sustainable Jersey Climate Change Adaptation Task Force (CATF)
New Jersey Climate Change Trends and Projections Summary
This document is intended to provide New Jersey communities with a clear picture of the observed trends and projected future changes in the climate system. It also provides an introductory set of planning resources for adapting to climate change impacts.
Climatic changes such as extreme heat, severe storms, flooding, drought, and sea level rise pose real threats to New Jersey’s built environment and natural environment. Observations and modeling suggest that documented changes, especially in recent decades, have been driven in large part by human influences on the climate system. But regardless of the causes of climate change, or any policy debates about the solutions, communities must begin preparing for the expected changes, some of which will be unavoidable.
A fundamental starting point for identifying vulnerabilities and developing action plans to adapt to climate change is to understand the most likely changes in local climate based on current trends and projections of temperature, precipitation and storm patterns. Understanding these changes will help New Jersey municipalities begin to identify the specific risks that climate change poses to their community and consider planning to prepare for such change.
This document is divided into three sections. The first section, Observed Climate Changes and Trends, is a summary of observed changes in climate in New Jersey over roughly the past 100 years. This section illustrates how past trends verify that the climate in New Jersey is already changing. The second section, Climate Change Projections, summarizes how climate in the Northeast U.S. will likely change in the future based on averages of current climate science modeling. This section illustrates the potential climate changes that could impact the Northeast U.S. under an average GHG emissions scenario. With an understanding of how the climate in New Jersey is already changing and how it is projected to continue to change in the future, municipalities can begin the process of developing action plans and strategies that address the specific local impacts that climate change poses on their community. The third and last section on Need for Climate Change Adaptation Planning provides information and list of resources on the climate adaptation planning process.