Swinomish Climate Change Initiative: Climate Adaptation Action Plan

In the fall of 2008 the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community started work on a landmark two-year Climate Change Initiative to study the impacts of climate change on the resources, assets, and community of the Swinomish Indian Reservation and to develop recommendations on actions to adapt to projected impacts. This followed issuance of a Proclamation by the Tribal Senate in 2007 directing action to study and assess climate change impacts on the Reservation. Under the guidance and coordination of the Swinomish Office of Planning & Community Development, the first year of the project was devoted to assessment of projected impacts, as presented in an Impact Assessment Technical Report issued in the fall of 2009. The second year of the project was focused on evaluation of strategies and options for recommended actions to counter identified impacts, which resulted in preparation and release of this report. The ultimate goal of the project was to help ensure an enduring and climate-resilient community that can meet the challenges of anticipated impacts in the years to come. The information in this report, therefore, completes the Tribe’s first critical assessment of climate change issues and actions, as a basis for the next steps in what is expected to be an ongoing effort to address a daunting array of complex issues.