Climate trends tool simplifies state environmental review process

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu

In 2022, the State of Minnesota began requesting information about climate trends at proposed project sites as part of the standard environmental review process. This requirement applies to a wide array of projects, from landfills and industrial construction to residential development and timber harvesting.

But many developers struggle to find and synthesize relevant local climate data, including both historical trends and future projections.

The University of Minnesota Climate Adaptation Partnership (MCAP) is now offering a tool to make this information easily accessible at the county scale.

The Climate Adaptation Partnership’s County Climate Trends tool shows data for Aitkin County.

“With the click of a button, Minnesotans can now find temperature and precipitation data specific to the county where they’re working,” said Dena Coffman, MCAP’s GIS specialist. “By simplifying this process, we’re making it easier to find accurate information about climate change and better plan for the future.”

The tool is primarily intended to help users complete an Environmental Assessment Worksheet, but it can also be used in other planning applications.

The Climate Adaptation Partnership is a joint partnership of the University of Minnesota Extension and the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences. The organization is a national leader in providing publicly available local climate projections and hands-on guidance for climate adaptation and risk mitigation.