Delta Adapts: Creating a Climate Resilient Future

About

Climate changes increase risk to California's water supply, economy, biodiversity, residents, and more. In the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, climate change will decrease water quality, increase stress on species that thrive in the region’s ecosystems, and put more pressure on levees that protect residents, farmland, and public utilities from flooding. There is a critical need for regional adaptation rooted in science-based decision-making to address these impacts and reduce the Delta's vulnerability to climate change.

The Council is leading a two-part climate initiative called “Delta Adapts,” which takes a comprehensive, regional approach to climate resiliency that cuts across regional boundaries and commits to collaboration across State, local, and regional levels. The initiative began with a climate change Vulnerability Assessment for the Delta and Suisun Marsh, published in June 2021. Read this information sheet (lea la hoja informativa del proyecto en español) for a summary of the Delta Adapts initiative and the Vulnerability Assessment.

In November 2024, the Council published a draft Adaptation Plan for public review detailing strategies and actions the Council and its partners can take to adapt to climate vulnerabilities in the Delta. Read this information sheet for a summary of the strategies included in the draft Adaptation Plan.

The cover of the Delta Stewardship Council’s draft Adaptation Plan, published in November 2024 as part of it’s climate initiative (Delta Adapts).

A draft Adaptation Plan is out now for public review!

The Delta Adapts draft Adaptation Plan and supporting documentation are now available for a 60-day public review period. Please send comments on the draft plan by January 17, 2025, to climatechange@deltacouncil.ca.gov or by mail to:

Delta Stewardship Council
ATTN: Morgan Chow
715 P Street, 15-300
Sacramento, CA 95814

Lea el resumen ejecutivo en español aquí.

Tribal consultation requests were sent via U.S. mail and email to tribes. If a tribe is interested in initiating consultation with the Council on the draft Adaptation Plan, they are encouraged to email the tribal liaison at tribal.liaison@deltacouncil.ca.gov for more information.

Join us for a hybrid drop-in workshop on the Delta Adapts Draft Adaptation Plan!

Share your thoughts and ask questions about the Delta Adapts Draft Adaptation Plan. Comments and ideas heard at this hybrid discussion will be considered along with written public comments submitted via email or mail (due by January 17, 2025; see above instructions to submit written comments); input from tribal consultations; and input heard at community events throughout the Delta. If your organization is interested in a presentation by Council staff and/or knows of an event where staff could talk about this work, please reach out to climatechange@deltacouncil.ca.gov.

When: January 6, 2025; join anytime between 4:00-6:00 PM.

Where: In-person at 715 P Street, Sacramento, CA, room 221C; or participate virtually on Zoom.

For planning purposes, we encourage all attendees (in-person and virtual) to register for the event and answer the optional questions on Zoom here.

If you are interested in receiving high-level updates on Delta Adapts, please subscribe to receive email announcements from the Council. For any questions, please email climatechange@deltacouncil.ca.gov.

Adaptation Plan Process and Timeline

Developing the Adaptation Plan

A timeline of the Delta Stewardship Council’s Delta Adapts process.

The draft Adaptation Plan has been informed by a robust engagement process with diverse interests, findings from the Vulnerability Assessment, and other literature and existing adaptation plans (see graphic below or this information sheet for more details).

This graphic outlines the process for the Delta Adapts initiative, beginning with the Vulnerability Assessment that was completed in 2021. The Vulnerability Assessment found there will be: more flooding; climate change will impact Delta residents disproportionately; less reliable Delta water exports; periodic decreases in water quality for in-Delta users; increased loss and stress on ecosystems; and decreased agricultural yields. For development of the Adaptation Plan, Council staff engaged with the following groups in several formats between 2021 and 2024: stakeholder work group meeting series; technical focus group meeting series; environmental justice and tribal justice interviews; farmer and landowner interviews; 2023 Adaptive Management Forum; focus group member survey; Delta Residents Survey result application; Delta Restoration Forum; and targeted community outreach and community workshops. Engagement with the Environmental Justice Expert Group, informal and formal tribal consultations, engagement with 24 community-based organizations, and regular briefings with state, local, flood, and water agencies has been ongoing. The draft Adaptation Plan includes a set of adaptation strategies, responsible entities for implementation, funding and financing mechanisms, and governance best practices.

Past Accomplishments

Publishing the Vulnerability Assessment

The Council adopted the Delta Adapts Vulnerability Assessment in 2021. The Vulnerability Assessment evaluates the vulnerability of the Delta and Suisun Marsh to climate impacts through the end of the century. Refer to this handout for a summary of key vulnerabilities identified in the Vulnerability Assessment.

Background

  • The Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Reform Act, chaptered in 2009, mandates the consideration of “the future impact of climate change and sea level rise” (Wat. Code, § 85066.) in restoration planning and identifies a restoration timeline horizon of 2100. (Wat. Code, § 85302.) The Act also notes that the Delta Plan may address “the effects of climate change and sea level rise on the three State highways that cross the Delta.” (Wat. Code, § 85307.)
  • Executive Order B-30-15, signed by Governor Brown in April 2015, requires State agencies to incorporate climate change into their planning and investment decisions. It also requires agencies’ planning and investment decisions to be guided by prioritizing natural infrastructure and protecting the most vulnerable populations.
  • The Delta Plan is California’s roadmap for the region, supporting the coequal goals of a reliable statewide water supply and resilient Delta ecosystem. Research on climate change has advanced significantly since the Delta Plan’s adoption, with important implications for the Council as it seeks to fulfill its mission of furthering the coequal goals, which are sure to be continuously impacted by climate change.

As an agency of experienced planners, engineers, scientists, and communicators, the Council is uniquely equipped – and authorized – to steward the region toward resiliency. The Council has adopted regulations that support statewide water supply reliability and Delta ecosystem resiliency and has the resources needed to guide climate adaptation in the region. Through its strong working relationships with government agencies on the federal, State, regional, and local levels, the Council can influence action in the Delta to improve its resilience over time and communicate the statewide implications of anticipated regional impacts.

The Council’s role in Delta Adapts has three core elements:

  1. The convener bringing various partners together to work as part of a broader team,
  2. The initiator of the regional planning process, and
  3. An active participant collaborating with a robust group of experts and interested partners.