Communicating Climate and Communicating Climate and Climate Change Information for Climate Change Information for

Integrated Decision Support at the Integrated Decision Support at the County and Regional LevelCounty and Regional Level

Greg Dobson and Jim Fox

October 2009

• RENCI Statewide Mission - “To deliver technology and research from the UNC campuses to the people of the state of North Carolina.”

• RENCI at UNC Asheville Engagement Center– “Decision Support tools for Flood Mitigation,

Emergency Response and Water Resource Issues”

What is RENCI?

Our County and Region are Facing many Difficult Decisions

• Water Resource issues– Floods of 2004– Frequent Drought

• Multiple hazards that require climate information

• Integrating decision tools with existing data to make broader decisions

To deal with these issues, decision makers face many challenges

www.interfacesouth.org

• Diversity of stakeholder values, especially across different sectors• Decisions are based on a combination of factors and not a single driver• Data is often not at the proper scale• Who is a trusted source of information?• Understanding uncertainty with data• How can users understand the science?• Predicting the range of outcomes resulting from different actions - scenarios• Identifying “win-win” and “no regrets” solutions• Do we know who is empowered to make the decision?

Decision Support Tool Activities

Science communications

Explaininginformation

Web tools

Distributinginformation

Facilitation

Usinginformation

GIS/Visualization

Visualizinginformation

Technical Expertise

Technical Expertise

Facilities:VizWall, A-G Node, GeoDome, TouchTable

Staff Expertise:Geographical Information Systems (GIS)Web programmingVisualizationScience communicationsMultimedia artsGroup facilitationEnvironmental sciences

Flood Damage Reduction Task Force

• Purpose of study: Flood mitigation in Swannanoa watershed following following severe flooding from 2004 Hurricanes

• Decision: Integrated solutions that consider other factors including economic development, transportation, landuse, etc.

• Scale: Swannanoa Watershed, Buncombe Co.• Use of Climate Data: balance between flooding

and drought

GIS/Visualization

Visualizing Information

data visualization techniques

3D visual, Biltmore Village flooding

GIS/Visualization

Visualizing Information

data visualization techniques

show new visuals and movies...

3D visuals, Swannanoa River

Web Tools

Distributing Information

incorporate data visualization

Regional Climate Data Viewer with Multigraph

Web Tools

Distributing Information

incorporate data visualization

movies for flat screen and Geodome

www.youtube.com/user/RENCIAsheville

Science communications

Explaining Information

outreach and education methods

Swannanoa Watershed Floodplain Driving Tour

Land of Sky Linking Lands Project

• Purpose of study: Future land use planning• Decision: Integrated solutions that consider

other factors including economic development, transportation, landuse etc.

• Scale: Four county region• Use of Climate Data: Regional climate impact

on land use issues and water resources

Facilitation

Using Information

collaboration/group engagement

Land of Sky web portal

Facilitation

Using Information

collaboration/group engagement

Land of Sky web portal

Multi-Hazard Risk Tool

• Purpose of study: Tool for Emergency Managers that integrates

• Decision: How to plan for multiple risks including flooding, wildfire, landslides, winter storms, dam failure, etc.

• Scale: Buncombe County• Use of Climate Data: Drought, flooding,

precipitation, winter storm occurrence

Web Tools

Distributing Information

integrate multiple data sources

Buncombe County Multi-hazard Risk Tool

Value driven, considering a combination of factors and users

Web Tools

Distributing Information

integrate multiple data sources

Tool tied to individual parcels – integration with City of Asheville and Buncombe County GIS Databases

Buncombe County Multi-hazard Risk Tool

Web Tools

Distributing Information

integrate multiple data sources

Buncombe County Multi-hazard Risk Tool

Summary reports available by area and hazard

New CLEaR Grant

• Purpose of study: Climate Literacy Education and Research Grant – development of web tools and seminars

• Decision: Application of Climate Data for Decision Support across Multiple Sectors• Climate change• Climate variability

• Scale: Nationwide• Use of Climate Data: Multiple data feeds through

NCDC Climate Monitoring Branch

Using Information

Workshops

• Tool development is based on four activities– Visualizing information (GIS and other tools)– Distributing information (Web based tools)– Explaining information (Communication tools)– Using information (Facilitation process tools)

• Tool development informed by advantages of– Data accessibility– Technical expertise– Collaborations with community

RENCI at UNC Asheville Decision Support Tools: Summary