Senate bill would create climate change action plan

On July 23, the Senate passed a bill that would direct the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs and the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security to establish a long-term, comprehensive climate adaptation management action plan.

The legislation would strengthen efforts to mitigate the impact of sea-level rise and severe weather events on infrastructure by codifying goals, priorities, principles for resiliency, preservation, protection, and restoration, and committing the state to those practices “to the maximum extent practicable” once the plan has been adopted.

The bill would create an advisory committee, including one municipal official, to assess the Commonwealth’s preparedness and vulnerabilities to climate change in areas such as emergency response, energy, transportation, communications and health care. The committee would also be responsible for drafting best management practices.

The legislation would establish a grant program for regional planning agencies to aid municipalities in the development of adaptation plans and create a voluntary coastal buy-back program to acquire coastal properties or properties located in flood plains that have been repeatedly damaged by severe weather.