EPA releases updated climate change risk assessment tool

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently released an updated climate change risk assessment tool to help water, wastewater and stormwater utilities design plans to counter climate-change threats facing their communities.
The Climate Resilience Evaluation and Awareness Tool (CREAT) is an updated online version and was developed with stakeholders that included utilities, water sector associations, experts in risk assessment and climate science and federal partners. 
“Water utilities operate on the front lines of climate change and face the challenges of increased drought, flooding and sea level rise,” EPA Office of Water Deputy Assistant Administrator Joel Beauvais said. “EPA is working to strengthen America’s communities by providing climate preparedness tools like CREAT that local leaders can use to make smart decisions.”  
The updated tool allows utilities to better understand how climate change can have an impact on their operations and communities and provides information in intuitive modules. The tool also allows utilities to understand the financial threat of climate change through monetized risk results and to access data projecting the affects of climate change, including a projection map. 
Previous iterations of the tool have been used by utilities in communities like Manchester-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts, and Houston, Texas, to understand where they are vulnerable and develop adaptation plans.