Laboratory Resilience Assessments

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency wanted to understand the risk of climate change hazards, identify priority project areas to focus on, and determine adaptation actions for their facilities across the country. They needed a consistent process to prioritize project areas for funding.

ERG served as the technical lead to develop a framework and methodology to assess EPA facilities for hazards. ERG’s team identified and applied the most appropriate data and climate projections for sites across the country and developed a package of materials to guide the EPA’s prioritization process through vulnerability assessment, risk and consequence, and recommended adaptation actions. ERG worked closely with EPA’s facilities team and science and research teams virtually and in the field to conduct the assessment, identify priorities, and determine high-consequence risks. We designed a decision-making system to provide EPA with a consistent methodology to prioritize projects for funding. After completing the assessment, we developed findings and recommendations for each facility. Finally, ERG designed all materials for building capacity and understanding with the local teams.