A new report says climate change is posing a huge threat to California’s State Parks.
"State parks are very much at risk for all of the climate impacts we're expecting in California. They (the parks) also have a role to play in helping California meet its very ambitious climate goals," said Rachel Norton, who is Executive Director of the California State Parks Foundation.
The Foundation is an independent, non-profit organization dedicated to protecting and preserving our state parks. It produced the new 70 page report.
State Parks are a huge resource in the Tri-Counties. There are 27 of the parks in the region, including a dozen on the coast.
Norton talks about the goal of the report. "We're kind of sounding an alarm, but there are things we can do if we act now," said Norton. The report includes a set of recommendations.
There are two huge climate change related concerns outline in the report. "Just talking about sea level rise, the worst case scenario right now if we don't act is by 2100, up to 75% of California's beaches could disappear," said Norton.
"Our forests, including our amazing redwood forests on the north coast are in danger," said Norton. "We're getting hotter, and more frequent wildfires, and it's difficult for our forests to adapt to that. We want to make sure we are adapting to the things we can't stop, and also working to stop the worst effects from happening.
Expert say we are already be seeing evidence of the climate change threat. They say it's been one of the drivers of some of the big storms we’ve had this winter. One of the February storms, along with the surf it generated caused so much damage to Gaviota and Refugio State Beaches that they are still closed.
Norton says the good news that the State Parks Department is already looking at how to make the parks more climate resilient. She notes planning efforts are underway for the two hard-hit Santa Barbara County state beaches.
But, Norton says it’s going to take a long term financial commitment to do what’s needed to preserve the parks. He says the agency has already done what it can with its existing resources.
The total over the next few years would be in the hundreds of millions of dollars.
The report says the state also needs to look at opportunities to expand existing parks, and create new ones. The state’s biodiversity is being eroded away by habitat loss and climate change, so it’s important to preserve undeveloped land while it still exists.
"The time is now. We have time to finish it all if we start now," said Norton. "It's 5-10 years of work, but if we can get that done over that time frame, we'll be in much better shape to (pardon the pun!) weather what's coming in terms of climate change."
