Welcome to the California Energy Commission

Reports on the Third Assessment
from the California Climate Change Center

The State's third major assessment on climate change explores local and statewide vulnerabilities to climate change, highlighting opportunities for taking concrete actions to reduce climate-change impacts.

The third assessment, like its two predecessors, reflects a powerful collaborative process. Guided by a Steering Committee of senior technical staff from State agencies and outside scientific experts, 26 research teams from the University of California system and other research groups produced more than 30 peer-reviewed papers. They offer crucial new insights for the energy, water, agriculture, public health, coastal, transportation, and ecological resource sectors that are vital to California residents, businesses and government leaders.

 



PIER Report Our Changing Climate 2012 Vulnerability & Adaptation to the Increasing Risks from Climate Change in California - Brochure. Publication # CEC-500-2012-007. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 16 pages, 1.8 mb)

 


Agriculture: Vulnerable but Adaptive


PIER Report Vulnerability and Adaptation to Climate Change in California Agriculture. Publication # CEC-500-2012-031. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 113 pages, 2.5 mb)

PIER Report Adaptation Strategies for Agricultural Sustainability in Yolo County, California. Publication # CEC-500-2012-032. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 205 pages, 2.3 mb)

PIER Report Toward a Vibrant, Prosperous and Sustainable Fresno County: Vulnerability and Adaptation in the Midst of Rapid Change. Publication # CEC-500-2012-055. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 114 pages, 2.1 mb)

 


California's Changing Climate


PIER Report Climate and Sea Level Rise Scenarios for California Vulnerability and Adaptation Assessment. A White Paper from the California Energy Commission’s California Climate Change Center. Publication # CEC-500-2012-008. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 36 pages, 1.4 kb)

PIER Report Development and Application of Downscaled Hydroclimatic Predictor Variables for Use in Climate Vulnerability and Assessment Studies. A White Paper from the California Energy Commission’s California Climate Change Center. Publication # CEC-500-2012-010. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 95 pages, 6 mb)

PIER Report Future Climate Scenarios for California: Freezing Isoclines, Novel Climates, and Climatic Resilience of California's Protected Areas. Publication # CEC-500-2012-022. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 73 pages, 1.8 mb)

 


Coastal: Faster Rising Seas


PIER Report Coastal Flooding-Potential Projections: 2000-2100. A White Paper from the California Energy Commission’s California Climate Change Center. Publication # CEC-500-2012-011. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 53 pages, 4 mb)

PIER Report City of Santa Barbara Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Study. Publication # CEC-500-2012-039. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 89 pages, 3.7 mb)

PIER Report Developing Adaptation Strategies for San Luis Obispo County: Preliminary Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment for Social Systems. Publication # CEC-500-2012-054. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 92 pages, 2.2 mb)

PIER Report Characterizing Uncertain Sea Level Rise Projections to Support Investment Decisions. Publication # CEC-500-2012-056. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 44 pages, 1.1 mb)

 


Ecosystems: Changing Landscapes, Vulnerable Species, More Fire


PIER Report Projecting Growth in California (2000–2050) Under Six Alternative Policy Scenarios and Assessing Impacts to Future Dispersal Corridors, Fire Threats and Climate-Sensitive Agriculture. Publication # CEC-500-2012-009. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 72 pages, 2.1 mb)

PIER Report Climate Change Impacts on California Vegetation: Physiology, Life History, and Ecosystem Change. Publication # CEC-500-2012-023. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 89 pages, 2.3 mb)

PIER Report Consequences of Climate Change for Native Plants and Conservation. Publication # CEC-500-2012-024. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 58 pages, 1.7 mb)

PIER Report Identifying Vulnerable Species and Adaptation Strategies in the Southern Sierra of California Using Historical Resurveys. Publication # CEC-500-2012-025. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 141 pages, 3.6 mb)

PIER Report Fire and Climate Change in California: Changes in the Distribution and Frequency of Fire in Climates of the Future and Recent Past (1911–2099). Publication # CEC-500-2012-026. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 58 pages, 1.7 mb)

PIER Report Decision-Making Under Uncertainty: An Assessment of Adaptation Strategies and Scenario Development for Resource Managers.. Publication # CEC-500-2012-027. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 166 pages, 1.6 mb)

PIER Report Projected Effects of Future Climates on Freshwater Fishes of California. Publication # CEC-500-2012-028. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 60 pages, 684 kb)

PIER Report Scenarios to Evaluate Long-Term Wildfire Risk in California: New Methods for Considering Links Between Changing Demography, Land Use and Climate. Publication # CEC-500-2012-030. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 58 pages, 1000 kb)

PIER Report Potential Impacts of Climate Change on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services in The San Francisco Bay Area. Publication # CEC-500-2012-037. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 55 pages, 2.1 mb)

 


Energy: Meeting Growing Demand in a Warming World


PIER Report Water and Energy Sector Vulnerability to Climate Warming in the Sierra Nevada: Simulating the Regulated Rivers of California’s West Slope Sierra Nevada. Publication # CEC-500-2012-016. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 71 pages, 1.2 mb)

PIER Report Climate Change Effects on the High-Elevation Hydropower System with Consideration of Warming Impacts on Electricity Demand and Pricing. Publication # CEC-500-2012-020. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 103 pages, 2.1 mb)

PIER Report Hotspots of Climate Driven Increases in Residential Electricity Demand: A Simulation Exercise Based on Household Level Billing Data for California. Publication # CEC-500-2012-021. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 46 pages, 831 kb)

 


Health: Many Opportunities to Reduce Social Vulnerability


PIER Report Socio-Economic Vulnerability to Climate Change in California. Publication # CEC-500-2012-013. Posted: August 2, 2012. (PDF file, 77 pages, 1.9 mb)

PIER Report Mapping Climate Change Exposures, Vulnerabilities, and Adaptation to Public Health Risks in The San Francisco Bay and Fresno Regions. Publication # CEC-500-2012-041. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 104 pages, 5 mb)

 


San Francisco Bay: A Regional Focus


PIER Report The Impacts of Sea Level Rise on the San Francisco Bay. Publication # CEC-500-2012-014. Posted: August 2, 2012. (PDF file, 32 pages, 1.5 mb)

PIER Report Climate Change and The Agricultural Sector in The San Francisco Bay Area: Changes in viticulture and rangeland forage production due to altered temperature and precipitation patterns. Publication # CEC-500-2012-033. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 63 pages, 1.3 mb)

PIER Report Identifying and Overcoming Barriers to Climate Change Adaptation in San Francisco Bay: Results from Case Studies. Publication # CEC-500-2012-034. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 186 pages, 3.2 mb)

PIER Report Impacts of Climate Change on San Francisco Bay Area Residential Electricity Consumption: Evidence From Billing Data. Publication # CEC-500-2012-035. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 30 pages, 549 kb)

PIER Report Climate Change Adaptations for Local Water Management in The San Francisco Bay Area. Publication # CEC-500-2012-036. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 63 pages, 1.4 mb)

PIER Report Community-Based Climate Adaptation Planning: Case Study of Oakland, California. Publication # CEC-500-2012-038. Posted: August 2, 2012. (PDF file, 86 pages, 1.9 mb)

PIER Report Impacts of Predicted Sea-Level Rise and Extreme Storm Events on The Transportation Infrastructure in The San Francisco Bay Region. Publication # CEC-500-2012-040. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 80 pages, 3.9 mb)

PIER Report Climate Change Scenarios for the San Francisco Region. Publication # CEC-500-2012-042. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 22 pages, 631 kb)

PIER Report Climate Change Impacts, Vulnerabilities, and Adaptation in the San Francisco Bay Area: A Synthesis of PIER Program Reports and Other Relevant Research - Final Project Report. Publication # CEC-500-2012-071. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 65 pages, 1.4 mb)

 


Water: Every Drop Counts


PIER Report Water and Energy Sector Vulnerability to Climate Warming in the Sierra Nevada: Water Year Classification in Non-Stationary Climates. Publication # CEC-500-2012-015. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 29 pages, 647 kb)

PIER Report Climate Change and Water Supply Security: Reconfiguring Groundwater Management to Reduce Drought Vulnerability. Publication # CEC-500-2012-017. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 80 pages, 1.2 mb)

PIER Report Twenty-First Century Levee Overtopping Projections from InSAR-Derived Subsidence Rates in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, California: 2006-2010. Publication # CEC-500-2012-018. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 29 pages, 1.6 mb)

PIER Report Climate Vulnerability and Adaptation Study for California: Legal Analysis of Barriers to Adaptation for California’s Water Sector. Publication # CEC-500-2012-019. Posted: July 31, 2012. (PDF file, 70 pages, 762 kb)

 
 

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