Metropolitan Council Climate Vulnerability Assessment: Narrative Report

Abstract

Thrive MSP 2040 prescribes policy goals for the Metropolitan Council. Namely, the document lists Sustainability as one of five desired outcomes that comprise a shared regional vision and identifies “Building in Resilience” as one of seven core land use policies. To address these two items and align with Thrive, the Metropolitan Council must respond to the effects of climate change in its planning and operational activities, identify and address potential vulnerabilities in regional infrastructure, and provide related information and assistance to local communities. To fulfill these tasks, the Metropolitan Council is conducting a vulnerability assessment of assets as they relate to extreme heat events and surface flooding, which can be due to a combination of low elevations and topography as well as extreme rainfall events (intense or prolonged rainfall). As part of this larger vulnerability assessment, the Metropolitan Council asked a team of graduate students from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs to consider human vulnerability. For this report, the team has identified specific human vulnerability indicators as they relate to extreme heat, surface flooding, and the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area context and geography.