National Tribal Environmental Council

Background

In the past year, NTEC staff raised concerns about the Department of Interior (DOI) Climate Change Adaptation Initiative (Initiative). We pointed out the Administration’s budget for FY2010 was allocated $136 million for the Initiative, with no funding for tribes; and the proposed FY2011 funding request was $171.3 million, and only $200,000 allocated to the Bureau of Indian Affairs to assist Indian tribes. We provided metrics based on overall tribal land base to support our contention that tribes needed a more equitable share in the Initiative funding, considering the disproportionate effect of climate change on tribes and our homelands. We went further to request an allocation of $8.55 million to reflect the relative proportion tribal lands comprise of federal lands and of the entire United States land base.

What We Learned

The DOI Climate Change Adaptation Initiative will not directly fund tribes for climate change adaptation. Instead, the Initiative will fund DOI bureaus to carryout programs that will be used for specific actions that include: conducting assessments, building landscape-scale inventory and monitoring programs, creating adaptation strategies, developing decision support tools and strategies for resource managers and policy makers, and supporting the formation of landscape conservation cooperatives and climate science centers.

Budget Snapshot

Bureau 2010 2011

BLM                                        15.0                  17.5   (Bureau of Land Management)

Reclamation                              3.5                    7.0   (Bureau of Reclamation)

USGS                                     67.5                  77.9   (U.S. Geological Survey)

FWS                                       40.0                  58.8   (Fish & Wildlife Service)

NPS                                        10.0                  10.0   (National Park Service)

BIA                                           0.0                   0.2   (Bureau of Indian Affairs)

Total                                      136.0                171.3   (Budget dollars in millions)

The current continuing resolution passed by Congress froze federal spending at the FY2010 levels. Now in jeopardy is the $200,000 in the FY2011 budget intended for the BIA, which was meant to support tribal input in the Northwest Landscape Conservation Cooperative. And, it is uncertain how the Climate Change Adaptation Initiative will fare in the ongoing budget deliberations for a full year continuing resolution.

How Do Tribes Get Involved?

One option for tribes is to consider participation in the development and future work of landscape conservation cooperatives (LCCs). LCCs are partnerships that will provide science and decision-support tools to inform management decisions to protect and conserve resources. There are 7 LCC regions: Alaska; Pacific; Southwest; Southeast; Northeast; Mountain-Prairie; and Midwest. LCCs are at different stages of startup, and are actively recruiting tribal participation among other prospective partners.

Another option may be for tribes to get involved with climate science centers (CSCs). CSCs will be hosted by universities and guided by regional science-management advisory committees. CSCs will address the science and information needs of a full range of natural and cultural resource managers. CSCs will primarily work with the LCCs. There are 8 CSC regions: Alaska; Northwest; Southeast; Southwest; North Central; South Central; Northeast; and Pacific Islands. Five CSCs have been launched.

More information about LCCs and CSCs can be found at the DOI website: http://www.doi.gov/whatwedo/climate/index.cfm.

Conclusion

The DOI Climate Change Adaptation Initiative is not a program intended to directly fund “on the ground” adaptation measures. Tribes will not be able to obtain direct funding as we had advocated. The Initiative is intended for developing research and science tools, and sharing information in landscape-scale partnerships to guide management decisions and future responses to climate change. Tribes are being invited to participate in regional based Landscape Conservation Cooperatives and to a lesser extent, in the regional Climate Science Centers. Even though these partnerships may not provide direct funding for climate change adaptation, tribes may be able to shape research, science priorities, and policy direction to address critical concerns such as water rights and treaty rights.