California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 160

Introduced by Assembly Member Gordon

June 10, 2014

Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 160—Relative to sea level rise.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

ACR 160, as introduced, Gordon. Sea level rise.

The measure would encourage state agencies to communicate with the public, local, regional, and federal agencies; and nonprofit organizations and businesses, regarding the risks of sea level rise and the development and implementation of adaptive and protective measures to address those risks, and other impacts of climate change. This measure would encourage the Ocean Protection Council to work with the California Coastal Zone Management Agencies, the State Lands Commission, other state agencies, and non-state partners to consider establishing goals and planning principles to help prepare the state’s shoreline and coastal community for the impacts of climate change, including sea level rise.

Fiscal committee: no.

WHEREAS, The sea is rising and weather is becoming more
extreme. In fact, the county’s longest continuously operating gauge
of sea level, at Fort Point in San Francisco Bay, recorded a
seven-inch rise in sea level over the 20th century; and

WHEREAS, As a result of California’s changing climate, sea
level rise is projected to accelerate during this century. A 2012
report from the National Research Council found that the average
sea level rise projections for California are an additional six inches
by 2030, 12 inches by 2050, and 36 inches by 2100; and

WHEREAS, Three quarters of the state’s 38 million people live
near California’s 1,100 miles of coastline and San Francisco Bay’s
additional 500-mile shoreline; and

WHEREAS, Among those affected by sea level rise are large
numbers of low-income people and communities of color who are
especially vulnerable; and

WHEREAS, Coastal waters, waterfronts, bays, ports, harbors,
marinas, wetlands, estuaries, riparian areas, and beaches are
important environmental and economic resources of California;
and

WHEREAS, Sea level rise and other extreme events threaten
water supply and California’s agriculture by causing saltwater
intrusion into the state’s freshwater sources, including, but not
limited to, the Delta and coastal aquifers; and

WHEREAS, Critical existing infrastructure in California,
including, but not limited to, roads, hospitals, schools, emergency
facilities, wastewater treatment plants, and power plants, and new
development on the coast and on the San Francisco Bay is
vulnerable to sea level rise; and

WHEREAS, Sea level rise threatens public access to the coast
and its recreational areas; and

WHEREAS, Beaches, wetlands, streams, and other natural
habitats that benefit wildlife and communities along the coast
require protection, restoration, and enhancement due to the effects
of sea level rise; and

WHEREAS, The Assembly Select Committee on Sea Level
Rise and the California Economy was established last year to
thoroughly review the challenges ahead in addressing the expected
impacts of sea level rise on the state and its economy; and

WHEREAS, The Assembly Select Committee on Sea Level
Rise and the California Economy held four hearings throughout
the state to examine the effect of sea level rise on various sectors
and industries. Topics at those hearings included projected impacts
on coastal agricultural, fishing and aquacultural industry, tourism,
ports, airports, roads and bridges, and water and power
infrastructure, and an examination of the existing authority of state
agencies regarding the state’s preparedness and response to
anticipated sea level rise; and

WHEREAS, State agencies have already begun to address this
critical issue. For example, in December 2013, the Natural
Resources Agency released a draft of the Safeguarding California
Plan for reducing climate risk that identified climate risks to
California’s oceans, coastal ecosystems, and coastal resources and
provided state guidance for reducing those risks; and

WHEREAS, State, local, and private action is needed to plan
and design for coastal resiliency and long-term coastal
sustainability; and

WHEREAS, State, local, and private action is needed to protect
public health and safety and public and private coastal and San
Francisco Bay infrastructure, ports, public facilities and services,
jobs, and economic assets; and

WHEREAS, State, local, and private action to protect coastal
resources from the impacts of climate change may provide
additional public benefits, including, but not limited to, flood
protection, improved water quality, and increases in fish and
wildlife for food and recreation; and

WHEREAS, Although adapting to sea level rise and other
extreme impacts of climate change will be expensive, that price
will be far lower than the alternative of waiting and reacting to
these impacts as they occur; and

WHEREAS, Extensive cooperation between state, local, and
private entities is needed to adequately respond to the effects sea
level rise and climate change; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate
thereof concurring, That the Legislature encourages the Ocean
Protection Council, in its convening role, to work with the
California Coastal Zone Management Agencies (the Coastal
Commission, the San Francisco Bay Conservation and
Development Commission, and the State Coastal Conservancy),
the State Lands Commission, other state agencies, and non-state
partners to consider establishing coastal climate adaptation goals
and planning principles to help prepare the state’s shoreline and
coastal communities for the impacts of climate change, including
sea level rise, coastal erosion, and extreme storm-related events.
The establishment of these goals and planning principles would
implement a recommendation from the Safeguarding California
Plan to form a state coastal leadership group on sea level rise to
help guide state activities, enhance agency coordination, and
facilitate adaptation strategies; and be it further

Resolved, That state agencies are encouraged to engage and
communicate with the public; local, regional, and federal agencies;
and nonprofit organizations and businesses regarding the risks of
sea level rise and the development and implementation of adaptive
and protective measures; and be it further

Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies
of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.