Together, we build resilience.
Eagle County is a made up of a diverse and vibrant set of communities. We have unparalleled natural beauty that creates endless opportunities for outdoor recreation, an excellent quality of life, and supports both the wildlife of the region and our thriving economy.
Yet the climate is changing and those changes have wide reaching impacts that affect nearly every aspect of our community. We have seen wildfires destroy homes and displace our neighbors. We have seen drought years decrease our water supply, reduce snowfall and shorten the ski season, and limit water in streams and rivers for both animals and people. We have also seen flood waters rise quickly requiring emergency response and evacuations. The health of our residents and visitors, our economic growth, wildlife, critical infrastructure, and our natural resources are all already being affected by these changes which are projected to get more severe in the future. On top of this, our economy isn’t working for everyone. We have a shortage of affordable housing, and those who are economically disadvantaged are often the ones hit first and worst by extreme weather events, changing climate, and the associated socioeconomic impacts.
Together, we have a vision for a sustainable and vibrant future. A future where Eagle County is a thriving, equitable, and resilient community that embraces change, exemplifies environmental stewardship and sustainability, and promotes a diverse and vibrant economy that benefits all. The development of this Resilience Framework was guided by input from dozens of community members representing a wide-ranging set of public, private, academic and non-profit organizations. It provides a roadmap to our future and can be used to help guide our actions for years to come. It is an early step in the ongoing journey to improve the resilience of our community and a proactive investment in building the positive future of Eagle County.
Eagle County Board of County Commissioners,
Juntos construimos resiliencia.
El Condado de Eagle está conformado por numerosos y diversos grupos de comunidades. Tenemos una belleza natural inigualable que crea infinitas oportunidades de recreación al aire libre y una excelente calidad de vida, y sostiene tanto a la vida silvestre de la región como a nuestra próspera economía.
Sin embargo, el clima está cambiando y los efectos están generando impactos que afectan casi todos los aspectos de nuestra comunidad. Hemos sido testigos de cómo los incendios han destruido hogares y han desplazado comunidades. Debido a los años de sequía, hemos visto disminuir nuestro suministro de agua, reducir las nevadas, acortar la temporada de esquí y limitar el caudal de los torrentes y ríos tanto para los animales como para las personas. También hemos vivido inundaciones que nos han obligado a requerir servicios de emergencias y efectuar evacuaciones. La salud de nuestros residentes y visitantes, nuestro crecimiento económico, vida silvestre, infraestructuras fundamentales y recursos naturales ya se han visto afectados por estos cambios climáticos que, según se estima, solo empeorarán y serán más graves en el futuro. Además de esto, nuestra economía no está beneficiando a todas las personas. Tenemos una escasez de viviendas asequibles y, generalmente, aquellos que están en desventaja económica son los que reciben el primer y mayor golpe de los fenómenos meteorológicos extremos, cambios climáticos y todos los impactos socioeconómicos asociados.
Juntos, tenemos una visión de un futuro sustentable y brillante. Un futuro donde el Condado de Eagle sea una comunidad próspera, equitativa y resiliente que abrace el cambio, sea un ejemplo de manejo y sostenibilidad medioambiental y promueva una economía brillante y diversa que beneficie a todas las personas. El desarrollo de este Marco de Resiliencia se elaboró gracias a los comentarios de docenas de miembros de la comunidad representantes de diversos grupos de organizaciones públicas, privadas, académicas y sin fines de lucro. Este proporciona una guía hacia este futuro y se puede usar para ayudar a orientar las acciones de nuestra comunidad durante los próximos años. Es uno de los primeros pasos en el recorrido continuo para mejorar la resiliencia de nuestro Condado y una inversión para seguir construyendo un futuro proactivo y positivo en el Condado de Eagle.
Eagle County Board of County Commissioners,
“Our vision is that Eagle County is a thriving, connected, and resilient community that implements innovative ideas and local solutions for environmental stewardship, social equity, and
a sustainable economy that benefits all.”
This graphic represents the differences and overlap between climate change adaptation (or resilience) planning and climate change mitigation planning. The Climate Change Action Plan, developed in 2016, is designed as a framework to reducing greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change. The Eagle County Community Resilience Plan (2019), is designed as a framework for reducing the risks of climate change impacts.
About the Plan
The Eagle County Community Resilience Plan is the foundation and framework for County Staff, the County’s organizational partners, and a diverse community of stakeholders to make critical decisions that address the County’s extensive range of climate change related risks well into the future. Since the start of 2019, the County has undergone a rigorous planning process to understand, define, and develop strategies that address the risks of climate change. This planning process has been propelled by County staff and a technical advisory group composed of experts and representatives in diverse sectors from across the County and is intended to complement the work of the Eagle County Climate Action Plan (2016). Through two technical workshops, multiple surveys, and extensive research, a resilience strategy framework has been developed to support the integration of adaptation and resilience priorities into the County’s General Plan and directly informs the capital project budgeting process, ensuring that critical climate adaptation projects be funded in the near term. Notes from the Resilience Working Group workshops help provide a look at the process used to identify key climate concerns within our communities and the process for addressing those key concerns with resilience strategies.
This website serves as the foundation for understanding the risks posed by a changing climate and provides robust, effective, and equitable actions that will guide the County in reducing those risks and enhancing the long-term resilience of our communities. The planning team has developed a multidisciplinary approach to resilience in the County that addresses four major focus areas: infrastructure, health and wellness, the economy and tourism, and natural resources. These focus areas are the building blocks of Eagle County and serve as the focus in this plan. Although the framework has been completed, this effort is a collaborative and iterative process and is intended to continue to evolve and grow well into our future!