Climate-resilient water utilities are an essential part of strong communities. WUCA strives to advance water utility climate adaptation so that communities can thrive in a changing world Collaboratively advancing water utility climate change adaptation Mission Climate-resilient water utilities supporting thriving communities Vision Contact Us Latest reports from WUCA Help your utility prepare for climate change Warming is here and now. Climate adaptation planning is not just about the future. Water utilities are experiencing the effects of a changing climate on their water resources today. Know your system and explore its vulnerabilities. Assess your water system to identify vulnerabilities. Risks can only be reduced if they are identified. Plan for multiple futures. Predicting the future is not feasible but anticipating plausible warmer future climates is. Prepare to face a variety of scenarios. Capacity building and assessment are part of the adaptation equation. Developing the technical and managerial expertise to identify and assess climate risks to a system is as much a part of adaptation as the steps taken to implement risk reduction measures. Sign up for email updates We'll keep you in the loop about upcoming webinars, case studies, and opportunities to participate Name Organization Email Sign Me Up Thanks for submitting! We'll be in touch.

Equitable Climate Solutions Case Studies More intense storms, rising sea levels, and more frequent droughts can strain water supplies, damage infrastructure, threaten public health, and challenge the delivery of clean water, sanitation, and stormwater management. While climate and water resource challenges affect many communities, those already overburdened with economic, environmental, and health challenges are especially vulnerable. Those most affected often include Black, Indigenous, and Communities of Color, lower-income people, children, and the elderly, among others. Imbuing the climate action work of water utilities with an ethos of water equity can accelerate progress toward a resilient future for all. According to the US Water Alliance, water equity occurs when all communities have access to safe, clean, and affordable drinking water and wastewater services; are resilient in the face of floods, drought, and other climate risks; have a role in decision-making processes for water management in their communities; and share in the economic, social, and environmental benefits of water systems. The water sector is at the forefront of the climate crisis, and water, wastewater, and stormwater utilities have a critical role as anchor community institutions to center equity and climate resilience in all aspects of their water management. In recognition of the responsibility to help their communities thrive, utilities should recognize the links between water challenges, opportunities to advance equity, and the need for urgent yet thoughtful adaptation, resilience, and mitigation investments. To advance the work of the water sector on this topic and in support of WUCA's Strategic Plan, WUCA partnered with the US Water Alliance to develop a series of case studies that highlight leading practices for equitable climate action within the water sector and provide examples of how utilities are working with communities to address climate impacts and climate planning in equitable ways. The topics for each case study were co-developed by the WUCA Equity Committee and the US Water Alliance based on existing work and topics of interest from WUCA members. The selected topics span a wide range of key actions to achieve equity in climate resilience—some practices that are relatively well-known and understood, and others that are new avenues for action.Each case study provides key background information, select utility profiles, and a list of additional resources to support implementation. Utility profiles include detailed narratives of how leading utilities center equity in their climate adaptation efforts. The narratives were co-developed with each utility and feature key insights identified by the utility. Contact information is provided for each narrative to facilitate follow-up and enable interested readers to learn more about implementing similar projects. Leveraging Data for Equitable Climate Outcomes Community-informed data is an essential tool to promote accountability, social resilience, and equitable climate action in the water sector. Profiles of utility best practices include insights from Portland Water Bureau and Philadelphia Water Department. Equitable Community Engagement for Climate Action Equitable community engagement in the pursuit of empowered and authentic utility-community relationships underpins all equitable climate action work. Profiles of utility best practices include insights from Raleigh Stormwater, Seattle Public Utilities, and Austin Water Equity and Affordability in Water Conservation Affordability-focused household water conservation programs have the potential to promote community-wide water accessibility while supporting utility fiscal health and the long-term durability of water sources. Profiles of utility best practices include insights from Houston Public Works, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, and San Diego County Water Authority. Climate Risk Disclosure for Equitable Climate Action Climate related challenges, including extreme weather, flooding, droughts, wildfires, and heatwaves, can undermine utilities' financial health, operational stability, and capacity to serve all in their communities equitably. These challenges necessitate efforts to assess, manage, and effectively communicate climate risks. Climate Investments that Support Underserved Communities Case studies highlight utilities that implement data-driven, community-informed strategies to bridge historical investment gaps and support those most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.

Focus Areas WUCA develops research, reports, and trainings to help water and wastewater utilities to understand climate modeling and uncertainty, understand climate risks, plan for enhanced resilience, implement climate solutions, and build internal capacity. Understanding Climate Modeling and Uncertainty Understanding climate models and their application in the water sector is central to WUCA's mission. As new climate models are developed and released regularly, many WUCA member utilities rely on downscaled climate projections to support planning, risk assessments, and long-term decision-making. Maintaining an up-to-date understanding of the latest climate science and its implications is essential for water utilities. WUCA seeks to track the evolution of climate models and identify both the opportunities and challenges associated with their application in the water sector. Understanding Climate Risks Water utilities face growing challenges in anticipating and managing the risks associated with climate change. Alongside natural climate variability, it contributes to more extreme events such as heat waves, wildfires, droughts, and floods. These hazards can disrupt utility operations and create cascading impacts across critical systems. Developing an enterprise-wide understanding of climate-related exposures, vulnerabilities, and opportunities enables utilities to prioritize actions and integrate climate considerations into everyday planning, decision-making, and asset management. Adaptation and Resilience Planning Implementation Leading Practices For more than 10 years, the Water Utility Climate Alliance (WUCA) has been at the forefront of strengthening the field of climate adaptation. WUCA members have uncovered ways to build adaptive capacity and incorporate new climate science into water management, planning, investments, and actions. To share what worked, WUCA has compiled climate adaptation practices that have been tested, leveraging WUCA members' experiences to build a shared knowledge base and illustrate not-always clear directions forward. This collection of leading practices in climate adaptation covers a suite of climate adaptation actions and is intended to broadly promote collaborative learning. Resilience Trainings

Learn how water utilities use CMIP climate modeling data in real-world case studies to support decision making, climate adaptation, and resilience planning. Purpose-Driven Climate Data Selection and Application Case Studies As water utilities expand climate considerations across business functions and climate hazards— amid a rapidly growing landscape of climate model datasets—selecting data that are truly “fit for purpose” has become increasingly complex. To address this, the Water Utility Climate Alliance (WUCA) Climate Modeling Work Group sought to develop several case studies that would illuminate the factors behind the selection, processing, and application of climate model datasets in planning analyses. Individual case studies can be found in the links below, and the full report can be accessed here. Austin Water Climate Planning Context: water supply Philadelphia Water Department Climate Planning Context: river flood levels Portland Water Bureau Climate Planning Context: water supply, water demand San Diego County Water Authority Climate Planning Context: water demand Click on any of the links above to open the case study The purpose of the case studies was not to identify general “best practices” or create formal guidance, which has been done elsewhere (here , here , and here ). Rather, it was to capture the specific circumstances and priorities that drove each utility’s decisions—what climate data to use, in what ways, and for what analyses—providing practical, real-world examples for other utilities to learn from. The case studies were informed by interviews with key utility staff and consultants as well as supporting project documents. Each of the four case studies follows a WUCA member utility through selecting and processing climate model data, establishing a data workflow, conducting project analyses, and applying the results to planning and decision-making. Three of the projects centered on future water supply and/or demand, and the fourth focused on infrastructure flood risk. Two projects were complete at the time of writing, and the other two were in their final phases. Each case study begins with a brief overview of the utility, followed by sections addressing: • Project context • Project methods, including data selection and processing • Results of the analyses • Use of results in decision support (intended and realized) • Lessons learned Each case study also includes links to additional resources that describe the project, climate data, and workflow—such as utility reports and peer-reviewed studies—and a utility contact for further questions. In all four projects, the workflows began with an ensemble of runs from 15 to 35 CMIP5 or CMIP6 climate models. From there, they followed quite different paths in processing those model runs to construct discrete climate and hydrology scenarios for the subsequent impact modeling (Table below), illustrating that there is no one “right” approach to using climate models to effectively inform planning. Unsurprisingly, the results from all four projects showed the potential for greater climate-related stresses and risks to the utility in the decades ahead—more severe droughts, larger flood events, reduced water supply, and/or increased water demand. Key attributes of the four case studies UTILITY AUSTIN WATER PHILADELPHIA WATER DEPARTMENT PORTLAND WATER BUREAU SAN DIEGO COUNTY WATER AUTHORITY Planning/ decisions to be informed Integrated Water Resources Plan; implementation of conservation, reuse, and supply strategies Planning and design of vulnerable infrastructure assets Prioritizing water supply system projects in the Capital Improvement Plan System optimization and capital improvement projects to meet future needs What was modeled under climate change in the project analyses Water supply River flood levels Water supply, water demand Water demand Time horizon(s) 2030, 2040... 2080, 2120 2020, 2030...2090 2050 2050 Climate model dataset used CMIP6, screened, custom bias-corrected and downscaled CMIP5-LOCA (32 models) CMIP6-LOCA2 (23 models) CMIP6-LOCA2 Hybrid (15 models) Emissions scenarios used SSP1-2.6, SSP2-4.5, RCP8.5 SSP3-7.0 SSP2-4.5, SSP3-7.0, SSP5-8.5 No. model runs/scenarios used in system impact modeling 15, plus 48 add'l drought scenarios based on those runs 1 - ensemble mean 23 (supply); 3 (demand) 5 System impact models used Statistical streamflow models; basin water availability model Model to interpolate peak flows, elevations, and return intervals from FEMA data System hydrologic model; water demand model; reservoir drawdown model Water demand model ADDITIONAL INSIGHTS Practical considerations carry more weight than climate dataset attributes The case studies show that utilities’ choices in the selection, processing, and application of climate data are conditioned by many factors—including previous experiences with climate datasets and analyses, technical capacity (in-house and consultants), risk tolerance, input requirements for system impact modeling, and whether a dataset is already “at hand.” While the inherent attributes of the climate model datasets (e.g., downscaling method, resolution, number of models) remain relevant, they generally played a secondary role compared to the practical considerations mentioned above. System-specific impact models are key to making climate data usable While it is natural to focus on the CMIP climate model datasets at the head of each “chain of models” deployed by the four utilities, the most important link in that chain may be the last one: a system-specific impact model that translates the climate and hydrology scenarios into corresponding system outcomes, couched in the terms familiar to internal and external audiences (e.g., reservoir drawdown dates, peak flood elevations, water supply yield). These models widely varied in their complexity, from a single-spreadsheet regression model to a water availability model involving several programs and hundreds of model nodes. Regardless of complexity, impact models need to balance simulation accuracy with ease of use and interpretability of output. (See WUCA Leading Practice : Develop tools that allow information customization [archived here ] for related information and examples.) Repeated engagements with climate data can build utilities’ internal capacity All four utilities had previously used similar climate model data to inform their planning, and in three cases, the project workflow was adapted or refined from a previous effort, rather than developed from scratch. (In the fourth case, a similar workflow had been applied in other river basins.) Utility staff reported gaining technical capacity and confidence over time as they became more familiar with climate data and the other links in the chain of models, generally taking on more of the workflow in subsequent analyses. WUCA meetings, training, and resources were cited as important in supporting this progress. Still, every case study project involved at least some level of external expertise—consultants and/or university researchers— to aid in the selection and application of climate model data, though the degree of reliance on these resources varied. (See WUCA Leading Practice: Build and maintain in-house capacity [archived here ] for related information and examples.)

WUCA Resource Library Search Search the website instead Please report broken links via our contact form WUCA Annual Reports Water Utility Climate Alliance Annual Report 2025 Water Utility Climate Alliance Annual Report 2024 Water Utility Climate Alliance Annual Report 2023 Water Utility Climate Alliance Annual Report 2022 Water Utility Climate Alliance Annual Report 2020 Water Utility Climate Alliance Annual Report 2019 Water Utility Climate Alliance Annual Report 2018 Water Utility Climate Alliance Annual Report 2017 WUCA Strategic Plans Water Utility Climate Alliance Strategic Plan 2022-2026 Water Utility Climate Alliance Strategic Plan 2017-2021 Water Utility Climate Alliance Strategic Plan 2012-2016 WUCA Guidance Documents A Beginner's Guide to Decision Making Under Deep Uncertainty for Water Utilities, 2026 How Do North American Water Agencies Define Water Supply Level of Service, 2025 CMIP6 Frequently Asked Questions: A resource for water managers, 2024 Improving the Vegetation Representation in Hydrologic Models Alters Hydroclimate Projections, A Summary of Impacts in Several Western U.S Basins, 2024 A Summary of Impacts in Several Western U.S Basins Beyond Barriers to Implementation, A Water Sector Perspective on Sea Level Rise Adaptation, 2022 Scaling and Application of Climate Projections to Stormwater and Wastewater Resilience Planning, 2022 An Enhanced Climate-Related Risks and Opportunities Framework and Guidebook for Water Utilities Preparing for a Changing Climate, Project 5056, 2021 Mapping Climate Exposure and Climate Information Needs to Water Utility Business Functions (project 4729), Executive Summary, 2020 Mapping Climate Exposure and Climate Information Needs to Water Utility Business Functions (project 4729), Research Report, 2020 Water Utility Business Risk and Opportunity Framework A Guidebook for Water Utility Business Function Leaders in a Changing Climate, Project 4729, 2020 Insurance, Bond Ratings and Climate Risk - A Primer for Water Utilities (2019) Co-Producing Actionable Science for Water Utilities, 2016 Research Documents Planning for Sea Level Rise: An AGU Talk in the Form of a Co-Production Experiment Exploring Recent Science,2017 Presentations Presentation materials from all WUCA Resilience Trainings, 2018- present Water system resilience in an uncertain climate future, Presentation at AWWA Sustainable Water Management Conference, Portland, Oregon, 2018 Climate Change Resiliency Planning For Water, Wastewater, and Stormwater, Presentation at AWWA Sustainable Water Management Conference, Portland, Oregon, 2018 Successful Coproduction and Collaboration, Presentation at AWWA Sustainable Water Management Conference, Denver, Colorado, 2018 WUCA Leading Practices Water Utility Climate Alliance Leading Practices Report 2021 Water Utility Climate Alliance Leading Practices Worksheet 2021 Water Utility Climate Alliance Leading Practices Overview 2021 Heat Impacts Case Studies Heat Impacts Case Study, Southern Nevada Water Authority, Nevada Heat Impacts Case Study, Portland Water Bureau, Oregon Heat Impacts Case Study, Oklahoma City Utilities Department, Oklahoma Heat Impacts Case Study, Miami, Florida Equitable Climate Solutions Case Studies Equitable Climate Solutions Case Study, Leveraging Data for Equitable Climate Outcomes Equitable Climate Solutions Case Study, Equity and Affordability in Water Conservation Equitable Climate Solutions Case Study, Equitable Community Engagement for Climate Action Climate Risk Disclosure for Equitable Climate Action, 2025 Climate Investments that Support Underserved Communities, 2025 Engineering Case Studies Engineering Case Study, Tarrant Regional Water District, Pump Station Cooling Solutions, Extreme Heat Adaptation, Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas Engineering Case Study, Seattle Public Utilities & King County, Ship Canal Water Quality Project, Seattle, Washington Engineering Case Study, Southern Nevada Water Authority, Low Lake Level Pumping Station, Drought Adaptation, Las Vegas, Nevada Engineering Case Study, City and County of San Francisco, Sea Level Rise Capital Planning and Guidance, California Engineering Case Study, Miami-Dade Water & Sewer Department, Wastewater Treatment Plant Upgrades for Sea Level Rise and Storm Surge, Florida Engineering Case Study, Copenhagen Cloudburst Management Plan for Extreme Rainfall, Denmark Engineering Case Study, Colorado Dept of Natural Resources Dam Safety Design for Extreme Rainfall, Colorado Engineering Case Study, New York City Dept of Environmental Protection Climate Resilience Standard Operating Procedure for Sea Level Rise and Extreme Weather Events, New York Greenhouse Gas Case Studies Greenhouse Gas Case Study: The Water Energy Nexus (WEN) protocol, California Department of Water Resources, California Greenhouse Gas Case Study: Sustainable Water Treatment Plant, Denver Water, Colorado Greenhouse Gas Case Study: Pumping efficiencies, MWRA, Massachusetts Greenhouse Gas Case Study: Biogas to Local Natural Gas, NYC DEP, New York Greenhouse Gas Case Study: Inline Micro-Hydro, Portland Water Bureau, Oregon Greenhouse Gas Case Study: Energy Recovery System for the Carlsbad Seawater Desalination Plant, Poseidon Water, California Greenhouse Gas Case Study: Pumping Optimization, City of Lakewood, California Greenhouse Gas Case Study: Solar Panels, San Diego County Water Authority, California Greenhouse Gas Case Study: Wind power, solar, and battery storage, Inland Empire Utilities Agency, California Greenhouse Gas Case Study: Carbon Free Water, Sonoma Water, California Greenhouse Gas Case Study: Floating Solar, Lake County Special District, California Greenhouse Gas Case Study: Reducing Fleet Emissions, East Bay Municipal Utility District, California Greenhouse Gas Case Study: Smart Building Cooling, Waternet Amsterdam, Netherlands Purpose-Driven Climate Data Selection and Application Case Studies Climate Data Application Case Studies, Austin Water, 2026 Climate Data Application Case Studies, Philadelphia Water Department, 2026 Climate Data Application Case Studies, Portland Water Bureau, 2026 Climate Data Application Case Studies, San Diego County Water Authority, 2026 Climate Data Application Case Studies: Full package featuring four case studies, 2026

Climate change is affecting the water sector by altering the water cycle and weather patterns. Extreme events such as droughts, heatwaves, floods, hurricanes, and wildfires are increasing in severity and frequency, posing critical risks to drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater utilities. The Water Utility Climate Alliance (WUCA) advances climate change adaptation, planning, and decision-making to ensure that water utilities, and the communities they serve, can thrive in the face of these emerging challenges.  WUCA leverages collective utility experiences to develop leading practices in climate change adaptation and mitigation that are actionable, equitable, and serve as a model for others.We collaborate, with each other and our partners, to enable water utilities to respond to climate change impacts on utility functions and operations to protect our water systems today and into the future. 2026 Work Plan 2025 Annual Report 2022-2026 Strategic Plan Member Utilities Austin Water Central Arizona Project Denver Water El Paso Water Massachusetts Water Resources Authority Metropolitan Water District of Southern California New York City Department of Environmental Protection Philadelphia Water Department Portland Water Bureau San Diego County Water Authority San Francisco Public Utilities Commission Seattle Public Utilities Southern Nevada Water Authority Tampa Bay Water Leadership Executive Chair: Alan Salazar, Denver Water Executive Vice-Chair: Andrew Lee, Seattle Public Utilities Staff Chair: Taylor Winchell, Denver Water Staff Vice Chair: Ann Grodnik-Nagle Seattle Public Utilities History In January 2007, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission hosted the first national Water Utility Climate Change Summit, which was attended by more than 200 water and wastewater utility executives, government officials, climate change experts and environmental leaders. The purpose of the gathering was to help participants better understand the impacts of climate change on water-related infrastructure and water resource supplies. Shortly after the summit, the Water Utility Climate Alliance (WUCA) was formed to provide leadership and collaboration on climate change issues affecting the country's water agencies. Today, the organization comprises 14 of the nation's largest water providers. WUCA members supply drinking water for more than 50 million people throughout the United States.

June 2024 Resilience Training, Seattle WA Welcome and Agenda Review Decisions for the Decades: Understanding Deep Uncertainty Decision-Making in the Face of Uncertainty: Seattle Public Utilities Case Study Regional Climate Impacts in the Pacific Northwest A Practical Look at Using Climate Science, Locally Portland Water Bureau Case Study Reflections on Day 1 and Review of Day 2 Agenda Stories from EPA’s CRWU: Providing Technical Assistance for Scenario-Based Planning to Water Utilities Adapting to Climate Change Scenario Design: Accelerated Introduction to Scenario Planning Adaptation Decision-Making Lessons Learned: City of Santa Cruz, California Case Study October 2023 Resilience Training (virtual) Welcome and Agenda Review Practical Considerations for Climate Adaptation One Water Management in the Delaware River Basin Climate Modeling and Projections for Water Sector Professionals Addressing Climate Change Impacts at the Basin Scale Key Takeaways, Reflections and Next Day Preview Welcome: Reflections on Day 1, Preview Day 2 Water Utility Climate Adaptation and Resilience Planning: Some Guiding Principles Methods for Decision-Making Under Deep Uncertainty Case Study: Adaptation Decision-Making at Metropolitan Water District of Southern California Case Study: Dynamic Adaptive Policy Pathways (DAPPs) in South Florida Key Takeaways, Reflections and Next Day Preview July 2022 Resilience Training (virtual) Pre-training webinar Day 1 Day 2 Day3 Decisions for the Decade: A "Serious Game" for Water Planners Practical Considerations for Climate Analysis and Adaptation: Know Before You Go Climate Science for Water Professionals: What Insight Do We Get from the Climate Models? A Practical Look at Downscaling, Bias Correction, and Translating Climate Science into Hydrology in the Colorado River Basin Downscaling Approaches and Hydrologies Developed for the Colorado River Simulation System Decision Making in the Face of Uncertainty: SNWA Case Study Water Utility Climate Adaptation and Resilience Planning: Some Guiding Principles Methods for Decision Making Under Conditions of Deep Uncertainty Adaptation Decision Making at Metropolitan Water District of Southern California Confronting Common Challenges and Addressing Institutional Barriers to Change December 2019 Resilience Training, Austin TX From Conservation to Climate Change: Planning for an Uncertain Future Practical Considerations for Climate Analysis and Adaptation: Know Before You Go... Climate Science for Water Professionals: What Do We Know About How the South Central's Climate Will Change? Modeling 101 Climate Science for Water Professionals: What Insight Do We Get from Climate Models? A Practical Look at Downscaling, Bias Correction, and Translating Climate Science into Hydrology Integrating Climate Data Into Forecasting Hydrologic Inflow Water Utility Climate Adaptation and Resilience Planning: Some Guiding Principles EPA's CREAT: Decision Support Example Houston Strong: Building Resilience to Climate Change Scenario Design: An Accelerated Introduction to Scenario Planning Methods for Decision Making Under Conditions of Deep Uncertainty (DMDU) Adaptation Decision-Making at Metropolitan Water District of Southern California Using Communication Best Practices to Engage Audiences & Address Institutional Barrier May 2019 Resilience Training, Tampa Bay, FL Decisions for the Decade: Understanding Deep Uncertainty Decision-Making in the Face of Uncertainty: Tampa Bay Water Practical Considerations for Climate Analysis and Adaptation Climate Science and Modeling for Water Sector Professionals Climate Science and Modeling for Water Sector Professionals: Florida A Practical Look at Downscaling, Bias Correction, and Translating Climate Science into Hydrology Case Study: Evaluation of Future Climate and Water Use Scenarios for Water Supply Planning in the Tampa Bay Region Guiding Principles for Adaptation and Resilience Planning EPA's CREAT: Decision Support Example Case Study: Broward County – Water Resources Resilience Case Study: Peace River Manasota Regional Water Supply Authority (PRMRWSA) Scenario Design Methods for Decision-Making Under Deep Uncertainty Adaptation Decision-Making at Metropolitan Water District of Southern California Using Communication Best Practices to Engage Audiences and Address Institution Barriers December 2018 Resilience Training, Portland, OR Decision-Making in the Face of Uncertainty: The evolution of supply planning and climate adaptation at the Portland Water Bureau Practical Considerations for Climate Analysis and Adaptation: Know before you go... Climate Science for Water Professionals: What Do We Know About How the Climate of the Northwest Will Change? A Practical Look at Downscaling, Bias Correction, and Translating Climate Science into Hydrology Conveyance System Stress Testing Pilot Study Water Utility Climate Adaptation and Resilience Planning: Some Guiding Principles EPA's CREAT: Decision Support Example Seattle Public Utilities Case Study Methods for Decision Making Under Conditions of Deep Uncertainty (DMDU) Robust Decision Making in Metropolitan's IRP Using Communication Best Practices to Engage Audiences & Address Institutional Barriers

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Engineering Case Studies WUCA has developed a suite of engineering case studies that showcase how the water sector is applying climate adaptation in practice, by using climate change information in engineering design and project delivery processes. These case studies were motivated by requests from engineers across WUCA utilities who requested concrete examples of how other water sector professionals are integrating climate change information into on-the-ground projects. Spanning from Seattle, Washington to Miami, Florida and Copenhagen, Denmark, the case studies demonstrate how engineers and water managers are applying climate change data and information to redesign facilities and assets, increase levels of climate resilience, and reduce risks to infrastructure. While climate adaptation best practices continue to mature, these examples offer practical approaches for designing engineering projects for a changing climate. Case studies were developed in partnership with the utilities and operators profiled, and project contacts are provided in each case study to facilitate follow-up and enable interested readers to learn more about implementing similar measures or approaches. Ship Canal Water Quality Project Location: Seattle, Washington Utility: Seattle Public Utilities Climate impacts: Extreme Rainfall Colorado Dam Safety Program Dam Design Location: State of Colorado Utility: Colorado Department of Natural Resources Climate impacts: Extreme Rainfall Wastewater Treatment Plant Upgrades Location: Miami, Florida Utility: Miami-Dade Water and Sewer Climate impacts: Sea Level Rise Sea Level Rise Capital Planning Guidance Location: San Francisco, California Utility: City and County of San Francisco Climate impacts: Sea Level Rise Climate Resiliency Standard Operating Procedure Location: New York City, New York Utility: New York Department of Environmental Protection Climate impacts: Sea Level Rise and Extreme Events Drinking Water Cooling System Location: Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas Utility: Tarrant Regional Water District Climate impacts: Extreme Heat Low Lake Level Pumping Station Location: Southern Nevada Utility: Southern Nevada Water Authority Climate impacts: Drought Cloudburst Management Plan Location: Copenhagen, Denmark Utility: The City of Copenhagen Climate impacts: Extreme Rainfall Case studies were developed with Dr. Heidi Roop, University of Minnesota, and the University of Washington Climate Impacts Group

Focus Areas Click a focus area below to expand Understanding Climate Modeling and Uncertainty Proceedings of the Water Utility Climate Alliance Piloting Utility Modeling Applications (PUMA) Workshop (2010) CMIP6 FAQ for Water Managers (2025) The Influence of Downscaling on Climate Projections (2024) Improving the Vegetation Representation in Hydrologic Models Alters Hydroclimate Projections (2023) Scaling and Application of Climate Projections to Stormwater and Wastewater Resilience Planning (2022) Co-Producing Actionable Science for Water Utilities (2016) Understanding Climate Risks Planning for Adaptation and Resilience Implementing Climate Projects Training Water Utilities for Climate Readiness Developing Additional Resources and Presentations

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Plan Unfortunately, science will not "solve" climate change in the way we traditionally expect science to solve our challenges. The range of climate projections will stay large and may even grow as more detail and complexity are added to the models used to understand past and future conditions of a naturally chaotic system. As with planning for retirement, practitioners benefit from embracing uncertainty. Faced with unknowns, it is better to move forward with different decision-making techniques and plan for a range of future conditions than spend time and money waiting for the science to become more predictive. Seeking robust, no-regret and low-regret investments that work across a range of future conditions and identifying solutions for future use helps build adaptive capacity within a utility's operations and investments to prepare for whatever the future may bring.Navigating the planning process in the midst of uncertainty is fundamental to climate adaptation success. The leading practices in the PLAN action area, introduced below, highlight how WUCA members are learning to better assess how changes in underlying conditions impact their systems (e.g., infrastructure, financial, ecosystems, and human resources) and how to plan in a climate change context. In the PLAN action area, leading practices include: Connect with ongoing or upcoming planning processes Leverage the power of well-placed climate change screening questions Be prepared to be changed by the processLearn from earlier climate change planning efforts Develop tools that allow information customization Take on climate change as another component of risk management Leverage existing funding mechanisms (also in SUSTAIN) Plan for a range of futures, not a single future Employ decision-making science and deep uncertainty concepts Build and maintain in-house capacity (also in SUSTAIN) PLAN Connect with ongoing or upcoming planning processes Climate adaptation can be most effective when worked into ongoing or upcoming planning within a utility, as opposed to creating a separate, standalone document like a climate adaptation plan. Examples of integrating climate adaptation into existing or planned efforts could include: Making strategic suggestions when planning documents are revised; Adding "consider climate change" to planning checklists; Adding language about exploring/evaluating climate adaptations in RFPs and consultant scoping documents; and Providing new data sets/analysis by which planning options can be evaluated Example: A climate change-focused integrated resource plan Water Forward, Austin Water's integrated water resource plan(Opens another site in new window), which was adopted in 2018, was developed with a focus on addressing climate change impacts, building on regular utility planning such as the state-required five-year water conservation and drought contingency plans. This 100-year plan evaluated future demands in multiple hydrologic scenarios to identify future demand-management and supply strategies to be implemented by the utility and the community. The plan will be updated every five years as part of the utility's ongoing adaptive water resource management approach. Austin Water staff continue to participate in other planning efforts to facilitate strategy implementation, such as development of a City of Austin Climate Equity Plan, green infrastructure plan, watershed master plan, and the state-required Lower Colorado River Basin regional water plan. These planning efforts have provided an opportunity for greater implementation, as described in IMPLEMENT: Be prepared to act when opportunities arise. Example: Strategic planning To recognize climate impacts and the need for adaptation more formally, the Portland Water Bureau included several climate adaptation strategies in the utility's updated strategic plan, described in Example: Concrete impacts of warming temperatures. Example: Enterprise risk management Southern Nevada Water Authority did an organization-wide risk analysis to understand the breadth of climate risk. See PLAN: Take on climate change as another component of risk management for details. ENGAGE SUSTAIN Seek out and support climate champions throughout your utility Progress happens more quickly with the support of motivated individuals who value and prioritize climate adaptation work, including executive-level leaders. It is therefore important to build relationships with and educate champions who can influence climate adaptation actions, then help sustain and strengthen those efforts. Having champions across an organization (in planning, engineering, finance, public relations, and other roles) can contribute diverse expertise and resources and help provide institutional memory as individuals' roles change. This practice is included under both ENGAGE and SUSTAIN climate adaptation actions. Example: Building a cross-functional team of champions The Central Arizona Project (CAP) climate adaptation plan(Opens another site in new window) was developed with an education and engagement mindset, which elevated existing and promoted future climate champions throughout the organization. Key to the development of the plan was the active participation of a cross-functional team of internal experts comprising all of CAP's climate-sensitive functions, including water policy, operations and engineering, maintenance, public affairs, technology, legal services, finance and administration, and employee services. The team collaboratively identified implications of climate change for CAP's functions as well as all components of the CAP climate adaptation plan. This approach helped foster climate champions in each of CAP's organizational functions by actively educating and engaging them in the climate adaptation process. It also gave members of the CAP team ownership in addressing CAP's climate challenges. Example: Interactive climate education with an organization One important way to build climate champions is through interactive climate education sessions within an organization. For example, Denver Water includes a "Climate 101" unit in all orientation sessions for new employees and provides climate science, adaptation, and mitigation information in its new employee onboarding package. As part of the Climate 101 education sessions, new employees are given prompts to brainstorm how climate change could impact various utility business functions (finance, water treatment, construction, etc.). This approach gets employees thinking creatively about climate change from day one of the job and establishes a baseline level of climate knowledge. After a Climate 101 session, a new employee of Denver Water's youth education team was inspired to integrate climate change into the youth education curriculum and has since created an entire climate change and water module that is presented to schools throughout the region. Building on the successful implementation of these Climate 101 sessions for new employees, the climate team began offering the sessions to other sections at the utility, usually in groups of three to five people to allow for more interactive conversation. This small scale and interactive approach to climate education has allowed the climate team to build climate champions throughout the organization, as well as to build relationships and co-produce climate adaptation ideas with subject matter experts from many business functions. Example: A dedicated person to support champions utility-wide Austin Water has a long history of implementing a variety of climate planning and management measures. While these efforts have traditionally been housed in the Environmental Affairs and Conservation Program Area, climate work has also been done across utility program areas—like Operations, Pipeline Engineering, and Water Resources Management—and, to some extent, in different city departments. In 2019, Austin Water established a new staff position, Climate Protection Consultant, to place additional utility-wide focus on climate issues. This includes taking steps to enhance information sharing about climate change across the utility, continuing to better incorporate climate concerns into cross-functional utility planning efforts, and representing Austin Water on city-wide climate planning initiatives. This position reports to the Assistant Director of Environmental, Planning, and Development Services. This reporting structure provides frequent opportunities for sharing climate-related information with utility leadership. In addition, the Office of Sustainability, a department within the City of Austin, is currently evaluating options for creating a new Chief Climate Resilience Officer position to address city-wide climate resilience planning and strategy implementation. ENGAGE Consult expertise throughout your utility regularly and with purpose Adapting to climate change requires diverse expertise and broad participation, both of which can be gained by consulting others throughout your organization. The type of engagement that works best varies depending on an organization's culture, but a little forethought and some regularity can go a long way (e.g., begin with listening and ask what matters). Example: Business function conversations Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) climate adaptation staff initiated a process of engagement with internal experts by first sharing results from a region-specific climate change projection study. At early meetings, department heads learned about the types of changes expected in the future and weighed in on how these changes might impact utility business functions. From these initial meetings, a few key business function areas were identified to develop adaptation actions. Then, SNWA set up small group meetings and interviewed each business function area to gather how the organization's experts thought they could address potential impacts. Conversations were summarized, and each small group reviewed the recommended actions and helped develop next steps. The process accomplished several goals: It educated staff about climate change It introduced staff to SNWA's climate leadership so they know whom to contact in the organization with questions Because business function experts were the ones to develop the solutions, it ensures buy-in and increases the likelihood that proposed solutions will be implemented See Example: Business function mapping to learn about a framework for considering climate change across an organization’s business functions. Example: Trash removal as an unexpected adaptation need Adaptation planners at the Philadelphia Water Department (PWD) recognized that successful adaptation requires expertise on both climate science and operations. It is not possible for PWD's adaptation planners to possess all of the necessary operational knowledge for the numerous systems PWD operates and maintains across the city (drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater). So the PWD Climate Change Adaptation Program (CCAP) prioritized engaging in two-way conversations with utility operators early and often to share information and begin developing meaningful solutions/adaptation strategies. For example, PWD's adaptation planners met with operations staff at one of PWD's wastewater treatment plants. After presenting future projections of precipitation increases, the operators shared that these conditions would likely produce more trash, accumulating at faster rates, during the initial screening stage of the wastewater treatment process. This consequence, which was only identified after consulting with plant operators, has implications for resources—more staff and equipment may be needed to remove and process trash to maintain current levels of service. Example: Utility-wide climate adaptation planning Preparing a Climate Adaptation Plan provides an opportunity to form a cross-functional team with a clear purpose (see ENGAGE: Seek out and support climate champions throughout your utility). Important lessons Have well-organized information for people to react to. However, do not wait for the analysis to be perfect—share what you have along the way. Strike the right balance between reaching out to staff and respecting their time. ENGAGE Tailor the climate adaptation message for the intended audience One key to successful communication is knowing your audience(s) and framing your message so it has meaning and value to them. A climate adaptation message that resonates with one individual or group might not "land" with others. Identifying which messages work best is time well spent. Example: Be clear why climate change matter Over the past 10 years, the Alliance has homed in on messages that resonate with water utilities to demonstrate the impact climate change could have on critical utility operations and functions. Powerful, clear messages that connect climate change to water utility responsibilities include climate change is water change and warming is here and now. Example: Messages that resonate with engineers When the Philadelphia Water Department (PWD) Climate Change Adaptation Program (CCAP) was ready to share information and results from analyses internally, success—i.e., whether climate information would eventually be adopted within existing planning, design, and asset management processes—hinged on good communication. For example, when sharing information with engineers who work on long-term infrastructure plans, CCAP first explained how climate change is altering the water cycle and how climate non-stationarity might challenge standard engineering practices, procedures, and tools. Planners and design engineers are used to working with return intervals and other statistical tools and methods that are based on historic data. It was essential to explain that, because of climate change, these traditional tools and methods may no longer be adequate moving forward. It was also important to convey that the CCAP team is available to help PWD staff tackle these challenges. Example: Concrete impacts of warming temperatures Climate change can be an abstract concept for water utility professionals whose daily responsibilities include operating reservoirs, designing and building projects, and managing aging infrastructure. To make climate change concrete, the Portland Water Bureau has identified a spectrum of ways in which climate warming and its impacts affect water utility functions and operations, from engineering and operations groups to finance, communications, and maintenance & construction. For example, climate warming and wildfire smoke directly affect the health and safety of the outdoor workforce. Also, increased risk of flooding and landslides could damage critical bureau assets. Presenting direct impacts to the day-to-day job of construction field crews and asset management engineers has successfully resonated with these staff. To recognize these impacts and the need for adaptation more formally, the Portland Water Bureau has included several climate adaptation strategies in the utility’s updated strategic plan. The utility also gives many internal and external presentations within the water sector, and most of these communications begin by connecting the physics of a warmer atmosphere to the hydrologic cycle. From there it is easier to illustrate how a changing water cycle will affect a given water utility. PLAN Leverage the power of well-placed climate change screening questions One of the first steps to successful climate adaptation is building awareness that future conditions (e.g., weather, sea levels) will be different. While there is often not a clear answer to how big changes will be, a lot can be done by getting decision makers to pause and consider how they might adjust. This could be as basic as inserting climate change screening questions into key planning processes. PLAN Be prepared to be changed by the process Grappling with climate change and planning for adaptations can inspire new ways of thinking that could alter how you plan within your organization, whether for climate, land use, population, or other significant future changes. PLAN Learn from earlier climate change planning efforts Over the past 10+ years, many utilities have started planning for climate change. Their efforts have resulted in both missteps and innovations worth learning about, such as trainings, case studies, and these leading practices. ENGAGE Include equity from the beginning Effective solutions to climate change challenges depend on many factors, all of which might not be clear at the onset. Engaging and focusing on the needs of communities, particularly those most vulnerable to disruptions caused by climate impacts, is best done at the beginning and throughout a project. By improving conditions for the most vulnerable in your community, you also improve conditions for everyone. ENGAGE SUSTAIN Make the business case for climate adaptation Improving resiliency takes time and resources but can also save time and resources. Transparency about financial elements, including tradeoffs in costs and other triple-bottom-line benefits — social, environmental, and financial — can motivate action and demonstrate how adaptation investments can save money in the long run. This helps engage people from the beginning and sustain the effort. This practice is included under both ENGAGE and SUSTAIN climate adaptation actions. See examples in the SUSTAIN section.