WCC 2016 Rec 097 - Activity Report

This Sea Level Rise Vulnerability and Adaptation Report (Report), initially mandated by Act 83 in 2014 (Hawaii Climate Change Adaptation Initiative) and expanded by Act 32 in 2017 (Hawaii Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Initiative), provides the first state-wide assessment of Hawaii’s vulnerability to sea level rise and recommendations to reduce our exposure and sensitivity to sea level rise and increase our capacity to adapt to a changing climate. This report has allowed the State of Hawaii to incorporate priority guidelines that other island nations could utilize. It should be noted that this is a technical report, and not a plan. The report led to the creation of the Hawaii Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Commission which works to develop recommendations to provide guidance for State and County agencies, communities, and other stakeholders for improving Hawaii's capacity to adapt to sea level rise.

This Report combines the best available science on climate change and sea level rise from sources such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Assessment Report 5 (IPCC 2014), more recent scientific reports from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), as well as the best-available peer-reviewed scientific research articles. Continued efforts from the State and other regional stakeholders will help to bolster the report in the future by adapting to new science and new data. The Hawaii Climate Adaptation Framework was developed as a process for science-driven and stakeholder-informed analysis of sea level rise and other climate change-related issues - this framework was used to guide the development of this Report.