Federal Water Tap, January 13: National Climate Adaptation Plan Updated

The Rundown

• Biden administration submits national climate adaptation plan to the UN.
• NOAA confirms 2024 was the hottest year on record.
• EPA withdraws proposed rule to establish water quality standards for rivers and lakes on Indian reservations.
• Agencies announce $1.5 billion in infrastructure law funding for water systems.
• Senate committees begin hearings to confirm Trump administration Cabinet nominees.
• Army Corps forecasts below-average runoff this year for the Upper Missouri River.

And lastly, the federal government assists with the Los Angeles fires.

“We know that thousands of homes have been impacted, but the real cost of these disasters comes from how much of the actual infrastructure has been damaged — the roads, the water system, the power — but also the soft costs and the economic impact. We know that this is going to be billions, and so we really want to continue to focus right now on whatever we can do to continue to support California in getting this fire suppressed and starting this recovery process.” – Deanne Criswell, FEMA administrator, speaking with reporters on January 10, about the Los Angeles fires.

By the Numbers

$700 Million: Funding for this fiscal year for tribal water and sanitation projects. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provides $3.5 billion over five years for such endeavors.

$799 Million: Funding for water conservation and drinking water projects in the western states. Some $285 million is for turf removal in southern Nevada and southern California, as well as recycled water in the Coachella Valley Water District. The other $515 million is for water storage and conveyance in four states.

News Briefs

Tribal Water Standards
The EPA backed away from a rulemaking to establish water quality standards for rivers and lakes on Indian reservations.

The agency said that it withdrew the proposal for two reasons: not enough time to complete the rules before the end of the Biden administration and a desire to empower tribes to set their own standards.

Studies and Reports

National Climate Adaptation Plan
The Biden administration submitted to the United Nations the federal government’s updated plan for how the country can adapt to a changing climate.

The 898-page document outlines four elements of adaptation that are meant to be a self-reinforcing cycle: assessing, planning, implementing, and evaluating.

Coordination across an array of jurisdictions will be essential. “U.S. adaptation objectives cannot be achieved through federal action alone,” the plan states.

National adaptation plans, based on national priorities, were incorporated into the UN climate process in 2011.

Heat Record
NOAA confirmed that 2024 was the hottest year since 1850, when global record keeping began.

The global average temperature was nearly 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-Industrial times, when the burning of fossil fuels began in earnest.

Most of that heat is going into the ocean, where temperatures in the upper reaches also set a record. Thermal expansion contributes to sea-level rise and fuels tropical storms.

In context: The Year in Water, 2024 – Risky Business

Missouri River Basin Forecast
Due to a below-average snowpack, the Army Corps of Engineers forecasts that runoff this year in the Missouri River basin will be 79 percent of normal. That will result in lower than average hydropower generation from the basin’s dams.

It is too soon to know how river navigation will be affected later this year.

On the Radar

Senate Confirmation Hearings
The work of installing a new executive branch begins with a week of Senate confirmation hearings for Cabinet nominees.

On January 14, the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources will interrogate Doug Burgum, the former North Dakota governor tapped to lead the Interior Department.

On January 15, the committee returns with a hearing with Chris Wright, the Energy Department nominee who is chief executive of Liberty Energy, a fracking company.

On January 16, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works will hear from Lee Zeldin, President Trump’s pick to guide the EPA. Zeldin, from New York, served in the House of Representatives from 2015 to 2023.

All hearings begin at 10:00 a.m. Eastern and will be streamed on the committee websites.

EPA Water Affordability Meeting Rescheduled
January 16 is the new date for the agency’s webinar to discuss its recent report on national water services affordability. It will begin at 1:00 p.m. Eastern.

Register here.

Federal Water Tap is a weekly digest spotting trends in U.S. government water policy. To get more water news, follow Circle of Blue on Twitter and sign up for our newsletter.

Brett Walton

Brett writes about agriculture, energy, infrastructure, and the politics and economics of water in the United States. He also writes the Federal Water Tap, Circle of Blue’s weekly digest of U.S. government water news. He is the winner of two Society of Environmental Journalists reporting awards, one of the top honors in American environmental journalism: first place for explanatory reporting for a series on septic system pollution in the United States(2016) and third place for beat reporting in a small market (2014). He received the Sierra Club’s Distinguished Service Award in 2018. Brett lives in Seattle, where he hikes the mountains and bakes pies. Contact Brett Walton