The City is committed to mitigating and adapting to the effects of climate change. Asheville residents are most at risk from flooding, landslides, and wildfire driven by extreme weather, and the City is actively working to build our collective resilience to extreme weather disruptions.
Actions Taken
- Ongoing implementation of 22 high impact activities as identified in the Municipal Climate Action Plan [MCAP]. The MCAP utilized impact, equity and feasibility to prioritize and sequence activities. City Council approved the plan in March 2023.
- Collaborated with UNC Asheville’s National Environmental Modeling and Analysis Center (NEMAC) to conduct a climate resilience assessment. The primary purpose of the climate resilience planning process was to consider climate-related threats and hazards with a goal of becoming more resilient, or better prepared, by increasing our adaptive capacity. The primary hazards identified for Asheville are flooding, wildfire, and landslide.
- Incorporated findings from the climate resilience assessment into the City’s comprehensive plan, “Living Asheville,“ and included the assessment as a plan appendix.
- Produced a Climate Resource Guide to share information on how — as a community and individually — we can become better prepared and more resilient to the effects of climate change.
- Declared a Climate Emergency through Resolution 20-25
- Established the Climate Justice Initiative to collaborate with Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) leaders and community members to create a locally relevant definition of Climate Equity and to develop resources like the Climate Justice Data Map, Story Map, and Screening Tool to embed climate justice considerations in City planning and implementation.
Supporting Documents
Asheville Climate Resilience Resource Guide
Case Study – Asheville makes a plan for Climate Resilience
Blog post – City of Asheville working towards a proactive plan in the face of climate change
Final Assessment Report – April 2018
Resolution 20-25 Climate Emergency Declaration
Contact Information
Kiera Bulan, Interim Sustainability Director