University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) Climate Adaptation Project Conference Attendee Copyright 2014
City of Dubuque Consent Items # 19.
ITEM TITLE: University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) Climate Adaptation
Project
SUMMARY: City Manager recommending approval for Sustainable
Community Coordinator Cori Burbach to participate in the
University of Nebraska-Lincoln High Plains Regional
Climate Center Climate Adaptation Project at no cost to the
City of Dubuque.
SUGGESTED DISPOSITION: Suggested Disposition: Receive and File; Approve
ATTACHMENTS:
Description Type
Request to Participate in UNL Climate Adaption Project- City Manager Memo
MVM Memo
Staff Memo Staff Memo
THE CITY OF Dubuque
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Masterpiece on the Mississippi 2007-2012-2013
TO: The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
SUBJECT: Request to Participate in UNL Climate Adaption Project
DATE: July 25, 2016
Sustainable Community Coordinator Cori Burbach requests City Council approval to
participate in the University of Nebraska-Lincoln High Plains Regional Climate Center
Climate Adaptation Project at no cost to the City of Dubuque.
In 2016 the UNL High Plains Regional Climate Center received a grant from the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAH). The goal of the project is to
produce climate information products based on engagement, surveys, and focus groups
with municipal staff. From a broad perspective, communities in the Midwest region
experience similar weather and climate conditions, however, each city has unique
needs and issues, and will need to respond differently. The City of Dubuque has been
invited to participate in the engagement phase of the project, participating in a two-day
workshop in Lincoln, NE in early 2017, and follow-up conference calls with High Plains
staff.
Sustainable Community Coordinator Cori Burbach would represent the City at the two-
day convening in Lincoln, NE and on follow-up conference calls. All travel costs
associated with the trip would be covered by the NOAH grant.
I concur with the recommendation and respectfully request Mayor and City Council
approval.
Micliael C. Van Milligen
MCVM:jh
Attachment
cc: Barry Lindahl, City Attorney
Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager
Teri Goodmann, Assistant City Manager
Cori Burbach, Sustainable Community Coordinator
THE CITY OF Dubuque
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Masterpiece on the Mississippi 2007-2012-2013
TO: Michael Van Milligen, City Manager
FROM: Cori Burbach, Sustainable Community Coordintor
SUBJECT: Request to Participate in UNL Climate Adaptation Project
DATE: July 22, 2016
INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this memo is to request Council approval to participate in the University
of Nebraska-Lincoln High Plains Regional Climate Center Climate Adaptation Project at
no cost to the City of Dubuque.
BACKGROUND
In 2015, the City of Dubuque participated in a climate adaptation dialogue as part of the
Heartland Sustainability Directors Network. Sustainability coordinators in Iowa,
Nebraska, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Kansas partnered with climatologists from those
states to examine the anticipated effects of climate change, and the affect to municipal
operations, across the Midwest. Pilot cities, not including Dubuque, received an
assessment of anticipated impact that can then be used to plan future municipal actions
preventing or reacting to climate change.
DISCUSSION
In 2016, the UNL High Plains Regional Climate Center, which participated in the 2015
work, received a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAH) to expand this pilot. The goal of the project is to produce climate information
products based on engagement, surveys, and focus groups with municipal staff. From
a broad perspective, communities in the Midwest region experience similar weather and
climate conditions, however, each city has unique needs and issues, and will need to
respond differently. The City of Dubuque has been invited to participate in the
engagement phase of the project, participating in a two-day workshop in Lincoln, NE in
early 2017, and follow-up conference calls with High Plains staff.
Two deliverables will emerge from the project:
1. A written report for Dubuque that outlines the anticipated effects of climate change in
Dubuque. This first step in a risk or vulnerability assessment is one critical piece of data
that can inform the newly-approved Resilient Community Advisory Commission. It is
also critical in completing the climate adaptation requirements of the US Compact of
Mayors, which the Dubuque City Council approved signing onto in September 2015.
2. At the end of the project, the Climate Center will provide customized online tools for
cities that will keep the information contained in the written report current well into the
future, based on the most recently available science and modeling. Access to this type
of data will be important as the City continues to move forward in mitigating and
adapting to the impacts of climate change (e.g. reviewing up-to-date modeling of
projected severe rain events).
BUDGETIMPACT
As a participant in the project, I would represent the City at the two-day convening in
Lincoln, NE and on follow-up conference calls. All travel costs associated with the trip
would be covered by the NOAA grant. The only impact to the City of Dubuque would be
my staff time.
REQUESTED ACTION
I respectfully request City Council approval to represent the City of Dubuque in the UNL
Climate Adaptation Project.
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