EPA released its 28th annual Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks (GHG Inventory), which presents a national-level overview of annual greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 to 2019. Net U.S. greenhouse gas emissions were 5,769 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2019, a 1.7 percent decrease in emissions between 2018 and 2019. While many long-term and short-term factors influence annual greenhouse gas emissions in recent years, the downward GHG emissions trend can be largely attributed to falling emissions in the electric power sector. The GHG Inventory covers seven key greenhouse gases: carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, sulfur hexafluoride, and nitrogen trifluoride. In addition to tracking U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, the inventory also calculates carbon dioxide that is removed from the atmosphere through the uptake of carbon in forests and other vegetation. Public review of this year's report occurred from 12 February to 15 March 2021 and comments received are posted to the docket EPAHQ-OAR-2021-0008. Responses to comments will be posted to EPA's website within 2-4 weeks following publication of this report.

New as of 18 March 2021, EPA's Climate Change website will guide the public to a range of information, including greenhouse gas emissions data, climate change impacts, scientific reports, and existing climate programs within EPA and across the federal government.

Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad
January 27, 2021
The EO has three overarching objectives 1) promote safe global temperature, 2) increase climate resilience, and 3) support financial a pathway toward low greenhouse gas emissions and climate-resilient development. The EO reinstates the Presidential Memorandum of September 21, 2016 (Climate Change and National Security), establishes the Climate Policy Office within the Executive Office of the President and establishes a National Climate Task Force. In addition, the EO aims to use Federal procurement to support robust climate action including a carbon pollution-free electricity sector, no later than 2035 and clean and zero-emission vehicles for Federal, State, local, and Tribal government fleets.

Army Directive the establishes requirements for Army instalations in the Strategic Support Area to protect critical assets and ensure mission resilience against threats caused by changing climate and extreme weather.

The U.S. Army has published the Army Climate Resilience Handbook (ACRH) for use by installation planners to assess climate risk as they write or revise a diversity of plans, including real property master plans, Integrated Natural Resource Management Plans, Installation Energy and Water Plans, and emergency management plans. The handbook is organized around a four-step, risk-informed planning process with the goal of increasing climate resilience. An integral part of the process is the on-line Army Climate Assessment Tool (ACAT). The ACAT contains information on individual installations that planners can use to determine current extreme weather and climate change effects, infrastructure, and assets that are vulnerable to these effects, and adaptation measures that can be used to increase an installation's climate resilience.

EPA proposed emissions standards for airplanes used in commercial aviation and large business jets. This action will align U.S. standards with the international carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), making domestically manufactured aircraft competitive in the global marketplace.

For 50 years, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has maintained its commitment to protecting public health by improving air quality and reducing air pollution. This annual report, titled Our Nation's Air, summarizes the nation's air quality status and trends through 2019. Sections of this report convey information across different time periods, depending on the underlying data sources. While some are consistently available since 1970, like growth data, our longer-term trends for air quality concentrations start in 1990, when monitoring methodologies became more consistent.

The presentations from the 2019 Federal Environmental Symposium held on October 30-31, 2019 at the NIH campus in Bethesda, MD, are now available for viewing or download at https://www.fedcenter.gov/symposium2019-proceedings.

Offered by the Association of Climate Change Officers (ACCO), this course guides participants through the process steps required to establish and implement a GHG reduction goal. The instructors will provide brief case studies highlighting how their respective organizations adapted process elements to meet their business objectives. Key questions that will be addressed include determining objectives, establishing a baseline, establishing a business as usual forecast, setting GHG reduction targets, selling to senior management, and how to devise a viable implementation plan. The instructors will also provide direction on applicable tools and references, and they will lead discussion on how to overcome some of the most challenging obstacles.

Achieving organizational climate strategies requires a broad understanding of the legal/policy landscape of and related to climate change and energy. Offered by the Association of Climate Change Officers (ACCO), this course will help attendees think through how the current legal/policy landscape and stakeholder perspectives relate to an organization's interests and to inform its practices.

Offered by the Association of Climate Change Officers (ACCO), this course gives participants an understanding of current climatic trends and shorter-term consequences that is critical to ensuring the stability and long-term success of an organization. Participants will learn about longer-term natural climate trends as a baseline for understanding current human disruptions to the climate system.

This report is published in response to mandates established in The Global Change Research Act of 1990. The Fourth National Climate Assessment (NCA4) fulfills that mandate in two volumes. This report, Volume II, draws on the foundational science described in Volume I, the Climate Science Special Report (CSSR) [issued in 2017]. Volume II focuses on the human welfare, societal, and environmental elements of climate change and variability for 10 regions and 18 national topics, with particular attention paid to observed and projected risks, impacts, consideration of risk reduction, and implications under different mitigation pathways. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) served as the administrative lead agency for the preparation of this report. A Federal Steering Committee, composed of representatives from U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) agencies, oversaw the report's development.

Federal agencies continue to demonstrate progress and performance on energy efficiency and sustainability. The Office of Federal Sustainability website has been updated with the FY17 sustainability progress data, agency OMB Scorecards, and the list of agency Chief Sustainability Officers.

This guide is a case study of Huntington, West Virginia and early efforts to consider how green infrastructure could be incorporated into local hazard mitigation plans. It follows a partnership of local, state, and federal organizations and their collaborative effort to address local flooding and protect water quality. While the effort is ongoing, the Storm Smart Cities guide captures some early lessons learned that can benefit other communities interested in pursuing a similar approach. It includes recommendations for communities on integrating green infrastructure into local hazard mitigation plans. The Storm Smart Cities Guide was developed by the US EPA Region 3 Water Protection Division, Office of State and Watershed Partnerships.

The OGP Federal Supplier Energy and Risk Management Tool combines federal contract data with data about federal suppliers' and contractors' corporate-level sustainability practices. Contracting, procurement, and sustainable acquisition professionals can research existing practices and performance when designing contracting mechanisms to encourage additional cost-effective energy and risk management. Federal suppliers and contractors can benchmark versus peers. Other sustainability professionals and organizational leaders can benchmark existing or planned sustainability programs. Plus, the public can learn how the federal government spends money, and how federal contractors are working to reduce costs, avoid risks, and protect the environment.

By statute, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is required to publish scorecards on Federal agency performance on energy efficiency and sustainability. The scorecards available on this site assess agencies' fiscal year (FY) 2016 performance toward statutory and Executive Order goals, which were in place prior to the beginning of the current Administration. The information upon which the scorecards are based includes data, metrics, and scoring criteria that were developed in accordance with existing statutory and Executive Order requirements applicable in FY 2016.

Offered through support from the Nature Conservancy, this curriculum, consists of three, self-paced, online courses, provides a basic level of understanding of the basics of climate change, deforestation and forest degradation, and the REDD concept.

This document, prepared for the Naval Facilities Engineering Command Headquarters and released January 2017, is a desktop workbook to assist Installation planners analyze and develop viable action alternative strategies to address challenges they face due to climate change. Appendices F and G are also attached.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions decreased by 146 million metric tons (MMmt), from 5,405 MMmt in 2014 to 5,259 MMmt in 2015. This decline occurred despite growth in real gross domestic product (GDP) of 2.6% as other factors more than offset the growth in GDP. Energy-related CO2 emissions in 2015 were about 12% below 2005 levels. Emissions have declined in 6 out of the past 10 years. For additional details see the report.

(WASHINGTON, 10/06/2016) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today launched a new online portal that will provide local leaders in the nation's 40,000 communities with information and tools to increase resilience to climate change. Using a self-guided format, the Adaptation Resource Center (ARC-X) provides users with information tailored specifically to their needs, based on where they live and the particular issues of concern to them.

The White House has announced the winners of the 2016 GreenGov Presidential Awards, honoring those who have gone above and beyond to implement innovative sustainability projects within the government. Senior Administration officials will recognize the 12 individuals and team winners September 8, 2016 in a ceremony at the White House. Winners include EPA, NASA, DHHS, VA, and USACE.

Offered by the Association of Climate Change Officers (ACCO), this course will provide participants with an understanding of the value proposition for GHG management, fundamental accounting principles, disclosure, verification and reporting frameworks, and common practices for leveraging GHG data.

Offered by the Association of Climate Change Officers (ACCO), this course will provide a basic overview of sea level rise in the context of climate change, including the basics of temporal and regional changes, the forcing mechanisms for sea level rise in the past and projections for the future. Attendees will gain a fundamental understanding of the observing systems used to measure sea level change, and how various government agencies are planning for the impacts of sea level rise. Learners will also get an overview of the concept of risk management in the face of sea level rise, looking at various adaptation strategies, and discussing the concept of how to build resilience. Attendees will participate in an instructor-led discussion on what steps they might take to help mitigate impacts of sea level rise in their communities.

Energy, water and food/agriculture systems are inextricably linked. Understanding the intersection of these three systems is important since a disruption can present serious risks to an organization and lead to cascading impacts. This session will cover the linkages of these systems as well as the impacts, risks, and opportunities associated with the energy, water and agriculture/food nexus, and how it relates to greenhouse gases. Bootcamp instructors will provide examples of how these interdependencies can play out in a warming world. This course is offered by the Association of Climate Change Officers (ACCO).

Offered by the Association of Climate Change Officers (ACCO), in this bootcamp participants will receive an introduction to available community-relevant information sources and tools, climate data sets, and a template to help assess an organization's (or region's) climate risks and current resilience. Attendees will learn how to define climate-related hazards, recognize differential impacts of those hazards, identify existing and future risks, fully understand their current vulnerabilities and strengths, identify and utilize stakeholder partnerships to inform the decision making process, and evaluate the most critical vulnerabilities for their organization.

Offered by the Association of Climate Change Officers (ACCO), this boot camp will provide participants with an overview of the current state of knowledge about Earth's climate system, how climate is projected to change this century, practical implications of these projections for different socioeconomic sectors, and the basics how effective communication and engagement can help mobilize your organization for action. Attendees will learn how to use climate projections to identify climate related risks and vulnerabilities, and understand how science-based information and tools are being used for strategic planning. Participants will go through an interactive demonstration to apply what they have learned throughout the course.

The Climate Ready Estuaries program (CRE) works with the National Estuary Programs and the coastal management community to assess climate change vulnerabilities, develop and implement adaptation strategies, and engage and educate stakeholders. Recently added resources to the CRE website address how much the sea has risen, how much it might rise, and what the impacts might be.

For raising awareness and addressing the impacts of climate change on America's natural resources, seven awardees were recently recognized as the first recipients of the Climate Adaption Leadership Award for Natural Resources. The new award recognizes the outstanding leadership by organizations and individuals who develop innovative approaches to prevent changes that are affecting wildlife and natural resources. The Department of the Interior established the award as part of the Administration's Priority Agenda for Enhancing the Climate Resilience of America's Natural Resources.

April 2016 version of the quarterly publication of "The Corps Environment" newsletter published by the USACE Environmental Community of Practice. The purpose of this newsletter is to provide information about USACE and Army environmental actions, issues, policies and technologies.

The report provides a summary of the major climate change-related accomplishments of EPA's national and regional water programs during 2015. The report also highlights major research projects addressing climate change and water that were completed in 2015 by the EPA Office of Research and Development.

EPA recently published the annual U.S. Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions and Sinks, which presents a national-level overview of annual greenhouse gas emissions since 1990. The inventory shows a 9% drop in emissions since 2005, and a 1% increase in greenhouse gas emissions in 2014 from 2013 levels. By sector, power plants were the largest source of emissions, accounting for 30% of total U.S. greenhouse gas pollution. The transportation sector was the second largest source, at 26 percent.

The Department of Defense (DoD) has announced the winners of the 2016 Secretary of Defense Environmental Awards. Each year since 1962, the Secretary of Defense has recognized individuals, teams, and installations for their outstanding achievements and innovative work protecting the environment while sustaining mission readiness. Military Services and Defense Agencies may submit one nomination for each of the nine award categories. A diverse panel of judges representing federal and state agencies, academia, and the private sector select the winners.

On March 21, 2016, President Obama issued "Presidential Memorandum: Building National Capabilities for Long-Term Drought Resilience" and "Long-Term Drought Resilience: Federal Action Plan of the National Drought Resilience Partnership" to help sustain and expand efforts to reduce the vulnerability of communities to the impacts of drought.

The White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) has issued a revised "Guiding Principles for Sustainable Federal Buildings", per Executive Order 13693 "Planning for Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade." This guidance updates and replaces the "High Performance and Sustainable Buildings Guidance", issued by CEQ in December 2008 to:

• reflect the evolution of sustainable building design, construction, and operating practices since 2008,
• incorporate other building-related E.O. 13693 requirements,
• increase the economic and environmental benefits of Federal investments in facilities,
• enhance occupant health, wellness, and productivity,
• include climate resilience in building design, construction, and operations, and protect Federal facilities investments from the potential impacts of climate change, and
• provide information on tracking agency green building performance.

The revised guiding principles are located here and its companion guidance "Determining Compliance with the Guiding Principles for Sustainable Federal Buildings" is located here.

This training module is intended to increase water resource professionals' understanding of the causes of climate change, its potential impacts on water resources, and the challenges that water resource professionals face. The module also describes how federal, state, tribal, and local governments and communities are working to make the United States more resilient to the impacts of climate. The 45-minute training is part of the EPA Watershed Academy Web certificate program.

On December 15 the White House announced a new public-private water innovation strategy. This strategy includes an aggressive two-part approach by EPA and other federal agencies to address the impacts of climate change on the use and supply of the nation's water resources and calls on private sector and other stakeholder groups to help significantly scale up research and investment in water efficiency solutions. The Administration's new water innovation strategy calls for: • Boosting water sustainability and long-term water security by increasing use of water-efficient and -reuse technologies. • Promoting and investing in breakthrough research and development that will reduce the price, energy costs, and emissions requirements of new water supply technology to achieve "pipe parity" in the next decade. The strategy was announced at a Roundtable on Water Innovation held to engage with industry and public leaders to start building broader consensus on a path forward.The roundtable provided an opportunity for leaders from industry, academia, and federal, state, and local governments to discuss how an aggressive innovation agenda can help America meet the challenge of a constrained water supply and increase the resilience of businesses and communities in regions that will be affected by increasingly severe and lengthy droughts.

(WASHINGTON, Dec. 16, 2015) – In support of the Obama Administration's Climate Action Plan, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) jointly released the Biogas Opportunities Roadmap Progress Report today, updating the federal government's progress to reduce methane emissions through biogas systems since the Biogas Opportunities Roadmap was completed by the three agencies in July 2014. Today's report highlights actions taken, outlines challenges and opportunities, and identifies next steps to the growth of a robust biogas industry.

The text of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Paris Agreement.

In a statement issued 12 December 2015 President Obama endorsed the Paris Climate Agreement.

This new analysis by the U.S. Energy Information Administration indicates U.S. carbon dioxide emissions from the consumption of fossil fuels were 5,406 million metric tons carbon dioxide in 2014, an increase of 1 percent from the 2013 level. U.S. energy-related carbon dioxide emissions remain about 10% below the 2005 level.

The GreenGov Presidential Awards celebrate extraordinary achievement in the pursuit of President Obama's Federal Sustainability goals. They honor Federal civilian and military personnel, agency teams, agency projects, facilities, and programs that exemplify President Obama's charge to lead by example.

On November 23, the White House announced eight awards in seven different categories to individuals and teams. These honorees exemplify our Federal workforce's commitment to meeting the President's directive to create a clean energy economy that will increase our Nation's prosperity, promote energy security, protect the interests of taxpayers, combat climate change, and safeguard the health of our environment.

This version of the workbook must be used for comprehensive reporting of fiscal year (FY) 2015 energy, costs, square footage, and associated operational data. The data report is an Excel workbook that collects agency-aggregated data that are necessary for calculating scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions in the commonly used native units of energy consumption and fugitive emissions, as well as activity data for estimating scope 3 indirect emissions. It provides users with the summation of their calculated emissions, as well as the performance results for other energy and sustainability goals. The Annual Greenhouse Gas and Sustainability Data Report for FY 2015 is due on 29 January 2016.

The new agenda is made up of 17 Sustainable Development Goals and 169 targets addressing a broad range of topics including climate change, poverty, and inequality. The goals, which replace the Millennium Development Goals, cover headings including industry, innovation and infrastructure, sustainable cities and communities and responsible consumption and production.

As part of the Obama Administration's Climate Data Initiative, a new set of online climate data resources was announced to help with climate change planning, adaptation and management. The U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit is a website developed by NOAA and other Federal agencies that will enable decision-makers to take action. The toolkit will boost climate resiliency by using data-driven tools, information and subject-matter expertise. This also offers information from across the Federal government in one easy-to-use location so that Americans are better able to understand the climate-related risks and opportunities impacting their communities, which will enable them to make smarter decisions to improve their resilience. The Toolkit will also be updated with climate impact information specific to tribal nations.

Released on 3 August 2015, the Clean Power Plan establishes the first-ever national standards to limit carbon pollution from power plants.

This handout provides a list of tools and descriptions of their uses which are available to state, tribal, and local governments and others to adapt their clean water and drinking water programs to a changing climate.

The American Meteorological Society has released the State of the Climate Report for 2014. The report, compiled by NOAA's Center for Weather and Climate at the National Centers for Environmental Information, is based on contributions from 413 scientists from 58 countries around the world. The report provides a detailed update on global climate indicators, notable weather events, and other data collected by environmental monitoring stations and instruments located on land, water, ice, and in space. In 2014, the most essential indicators of Earth's changing climate continued to reflect trends of a warming planet, with several markers such as rising land and ocean temperature, sea levels and greenhouse gases setting new records.

The Association of Climate Change Officers (ACCO) is offering a series of 2-day training academies to enable attendees to complete all required training CCO Training Bootcamps (including electives) for the Climate Governance Certificate. These academies will provide curriculum on topics including understanding climate science and variability, identifying climate hazards and conducting vulnerability assessments, basics of greenhouse gas accounting, the food-water-energy nexus, and fundamental governance and stakeholder engagement strategies.

The DOI, USDA, EPA, NOAA, and USACE have recognized three new collaborative landscape partnerships across the country. Federal agencies will focus there on efforts with partners to conserve and restore important lands and waters and make them more resilient to a changing climate. These include the California Headwaters, California's North-Central Coast and Russian River Watershed and Crown of the Continent.

This report estimates the physical and monetary benefits to the U.S. of reducing global greenhouse gas emissions. This report summarizes results from the Climate Change Impacts and Risks Analysis (CIRA) project, a peer-reviewed study comparing impacts in a future with significant global action on climate change to a future in which current greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise.

The 2015 symposium was the platform for releasing the new implementing instructions for EO 13693 as well as providing updates on numerous other sustainability efforts by Federal Agencies. See the website for a full list of presentations and speakers. The symposium was held on 10 June 2015 and hosted by the White House Council on Environmental Quality and George Washington University.

In October 2011, the Interagency Climate Change Adaptation Task Force published the "National Action Plan: Priorities for Managing Freshwater Resources in a Changing Climate." It was developed by the Water Resources and Climate Change Adaptation Workgroup made up of federal agencies with responsibilities for water management. This recent report highlights progress made in 2014 implementing the National Action Plan and describes the specific tasks that federal agencies are planning to undertake in 2015. The work described in this report reports reflect a comprehensive, coordinated, and continuing effort by federal agencies to respond to the challenges for water resources management posed by climate change.

EPA, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of the Interior and NOAA, have recognized four collaborative landscape partnerships across the country where federal agencies will focus efforts with partners to conserve and restore important lands and waters and make them more resilient to a changing climate. Building on existing collaborations, the Resilient Lands and Waters partnerships located in southwest Florida, Hawaii, Washington, and the Great Lakes region will help build resilience in regions vulnerable to climate change and related challenges. They will also showcase the benefits of landscape-scale management approaches and help enhance the carbon storage capacity of these natural areas.

(Washington, DC, April 15, 2015) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released its 20th Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks today, showing a two percent increase in greenhouse gas emissions in 2013 from 2012 levels, but a nine percent drop in emissions since 2005.

Total U.S. greenhouse emissions were 6,673 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2013. By sector, power plants were the largest source of emissions, accounting for 31 percent of total U.S. greenhouse gas pollution. The transportation sector was the second largest source, at 27 percent. Industry and manufacturing were the third largest source, at 21 percent. The increase in total national greenhouse gas emissions between 2012 and 2013 was due to increased energy consumption across all sectors in the U.S. economy and greater use of coal for electricity generation.

This year, EPA is publishing key data in a new, online Greenhouse Gas Inventory Data Explorer tool, which allows users to view, graph and download data by sector, year and greenhouse gas. EPA will be holding an informational webinar on April 22 at 1 p.m. EST to demonstrate the Data Explorer tool and its features, and provide a tutorial on common searches.

This is GSA's innovative green building learning simulation which is a part of GSA's SFTool. Green the Building places you in the role of a resource-constrained decision-maker, charged with greening buildings through strategic energy, waste, water and occupant satisfaction improvements. You must choose technologies, implement best-practices, support behavior changes and plan carefully to create buildings that conserve resources, reduce waste, save money and keep occupants happy and healthy. Need help? Don't worry! Embedded links connect you directly to the clear explanations you've come to expect from SFTool.

(WASHINGTON, February 13, 2015) – As part of President Obama's Climate Action Plan Virtual Climate Resilience Toolkit, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced the release of the Climate Adjustment Tool for EPA's Stormwater Management Model – a widely-used, downloadable online stormwater simulation model. The Climate Adjustment Tool allows engineers and planners to evaluate the performance of water infrastructure while considering future climate change projections, such as more frequent high-intensity storms and changes in evaporation rates of seasonal precipitation, to determine the benefits of resiliency decisions to reduce local economic burden and protect communities.

(Washington, DC, January 30, 2015) Across the country, extreme weather and other impacts of climate change are threatening the health, safety, and prosperity of our communities. This month, NOAA and NASA announced that 2014 was the hottest global year on record. And as the planet continues to warm, impacts like rising sea levels, intensified storms, and heavy downpours are contributing to an increased risk of flooding. President Obama is committed to ensuring that American communities thrive in the face of a changing climate. That is why, today, the President signed an Executive Order establishing a flood standard that will reduce the risk and cost of future flood disasters by requiring all Federal investments in and affecting floodplains to meet higher flood risk standards. By requiring that Federally funded buildings, roads and other infrastructure are constructed to better withstand the impacts of flooding, the President's action will support the thousands of communities that have strengthened their local floodplain management codes and standards, and will help ensure Federal projects last as long as intended. See attachment for the full announcement.

The latest edition of "Our Changing Planet", the U.S. Global Change Research Program's annual report to Congress, illustrates the Program's significant progress in meeting its legal mandate and fulfilling the 2012-2021 Strategic Plan. The report gives an overview of the Federal global change research enterprise and upcoming research priorities, with plain-language highlights spotlighting recent efforts to advance science and support societal needs. Among the many highlights in the report, a few examples include: new satellite missions to measure global change; progress in forecasting near-term climate; understanding natural and human factors in the carbon cycle; modeling climate impacts on agriculture and the agro-economy; delivering the 2014 National Climate Assessment; supporting climate preparedness and resilience in the federal government; and building capacity among climate change interpreters in informal education settings. To access the report, visit: http://www.globalchange.gov/browse/reports/our-changing-planet-fy-2015.

As part of an ongoing effort to modernize implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act and promote effective and transparent environmental reviews, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) has released updated draft guidance for Federal agencies on how to consider greenhouse gas emissions and the impacts of climate change in their NEPA analyses, as well as final guidance on conducting programmatic NEPA reviews. These measures will increase the efficiency of environmental reviews and help agencies make informed decisions that are sound investments of taxpayer dollars and good for American communities.

The GSA Travel Management Information Service (MIS) is offering online training webinars to assist with air business and ground business travel reporting of Scope 3 travel greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. These trainings sessions are specifically focused on generating travel GHG reports using GSA's Travel MIS. The team is happy to invite you to attend a one hour training session to learn how to run emission reports in MIS and report on agency emissions for FY14. The following dates and times are available. If interested, please e-mail TravelMIS@gsa.gov with the preferred session(s). A confirmation email will be sent from the Travel MIS team.

Available sessions (all times are listed in EST):

Session 1: Thursday 12/4/2014 @ 2PM
Session 2: Wednesday 12/10/2014 @ 12PM
Session 3: Tuesday 12/16/2014 @ 1PM
Session 4: Tuesday 1/6/2015 @ 3PM
Session 5: Monday 1/12/2015 @ 11AM
Session 6: Friday 1/16/2015 @ 10AM
Session 7: Monday 1/19/2015 @ 12PM

For more information contact: TravelMIS@gsa.gov.

FINAL REMINDER - ONLY 3 DAYS LEFT TO PARTICIPATE! The White House is launching the second GreenGov Challenge! If you're a federal employee, share your idea on how the federal government can lead by example in eight different categories -- from climate change mitigation and resilience, to water conservation, to waste reduction. Submissions are open until 5 December 2014. After the submission period closes, GreenGov will release the approved submissions and all federal employees will be able to vote for their favorite ideas.

On 31 October 2014 the DOI released its 2014 Climate Change Adaptation Plan. The 2014 Plan focuses on the Department's work to address climate change through implementation of Executive Order 13653 and the Department's Climate Change Adaptation Policy (523 DM 1). Section II of this plan explains the Department's official Climate Change Adaptation Policy and provides additional guiding principles. Section III summarizes the Department's efforts to address climate related risks. Section IV demonstrates the Department's efforts to modernize programs to support climate resilience investment.

On 31 October 2014 Federal agencies released their plans for reducing their greenhouse gas emissions and preparing for climate change impacts such as flooding, sea level rise, severe weather and temperature extremes. The current agency Climate Change Adaptation Plans build on the first set of plans, which was released in February, 2013, and respond to a November 2013 Executive Order on Preparing the United States for the Impacts of Climate Change that established requirements for updating and reporting on progress on agency Adaptation plans.

On Oct 31, 2014 EPA released plans for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and preparing for climate change impacts such as flooding, sea level rise, severe weather and temperature extremes. These Sustainability Plans and Climate Change Adaptation Plans coincide with the fifth anniversary of President Obama's 2009 Executive Order on Environmental, Energy and Economic Performance, which set aggressive energy, climate and environmental targets for agencies, and detail how EPA's actions have already contributed to reducing the Federal Government's greenhouse gas emissions by more than 17 percent since 2008 - the equivalent of permanently taking 1.8 million cars off the road.

The EIA online analysis of 2013 energy-related carbon dioxide emissions indicates U.S. carbon dioxide emissions from the consumption of fossil fuels were 5,396 million metric tons carbon dioxide in 2013, an increase of 2.5% from the 2012 level. Despite the increase in 2013, energy-related carbon dioxide emissions remain 10% below 2005 levels.

EPA has released its fourth year of Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program data, detailing greenhouse gas pollution trends and emissions broken down by industrial sector, geographic region and individual facilities. In 2013, reported emissions from large industrial facilities were 20 million metric tons higher than the prior year, or 0.6 percent, driven largely by an increase in coal use for power generation.

The site offers complete annual data sets of agency aggregated annual energy and water consumption and costs by end-use sector, efficiency investment information, and progress toward key goals outlined in the National Energy Conservation Policy Act, as amended; Energy Policy Act of 2005; and Executive Order 13514. Historical data tables of agency energy use and costs by facility and mobility sectors by energy type are also available for FY 1975 through FY 2013. Detailed annual comprehensive greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories by federal agency are presented along with progress toward achieving scope 1 and 2 GHG and scope 3 GHG reduction targets. The data tables may also be filtered by numerous variables (agency, year, sector) and are exportable to Excel.

EPA's Climate Ready Estuaries, a program that works with the National Estuary Programs and coastal management community on assessing climate change vulnerabilities and developing and implementing adaptation strategies, has redesigned their website. Resources are now easier to find and webpages are now searchable. New features include interactive maps of Climate Ready Estuary projects, king tides, and more.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has released the "Climate Change and Health" webcast presentation that was orginally aired live on August 6, 2014. Based on the latest scientific evidence, HHS considers climate change to be one of the top public health challenges of our time. HHS assembled internationally-recognized experts from NOAA, CDC, and NIH for this webcast. It includes an overarching national perspective and regional snapshots on climate change, key health findings from the National Climate Assessment, and best practices to build health resilience in communities. The webcast can be accessed here.

"Climate Matters" is a new semi-annual publication featuring current activities in the U.S. Geological Survey Climate Research & Development Program. The newsletter highlights recent research findings and their relevance to societal needs, as well as issues of importance for resource managers, policy makers, and the general public.

This GAO report, Opportunities to Reduce Federal Fiscal Exposures Through Greater Resilience to Climate Change and Extreme Weather, release the results of a GAO study concerning the impact of climate change and extreme weather on federal facilities. The primary finding was that climate change and related extreme weather impacts on infrastructure and federal lands increase fiscal exposures that the federal budget does not fully reflect. Investing in resilience--actions to reduce potential future losses rather than waiting for an event to occur and paying for recovery afterward--can reduce the potential impacts of climate-related events. Implementing resilience measures creates additional up-front costs but could also confer benefits, such as a reduction in future damages from climate-related events.

As part of the Obama Administration's initiative to reduce energy use, pollution and waste and save money in Federal operations, on 25 July 2014 Federal agencies released annual updates that show significant progress toward aggressive energy and sustainability goals set by the President in 2009. The Federal Government – the largest energy consumer in the U.S. economy – announced that it has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by 17 percent since 2008, the equivalent of permanently taking 1.8 million cars off the road, and that 9 percent of Federal Government electricity is now from renewable sources.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has launched a Green Infrastructure Collaborative with the support of six other government agencies at the President's State, Local, and Tribal Leaders Task Force on Climate Preparedness and Resilience. EPA joined with the U.S. Department of Transportation, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Interior, U.S. Department of Defense, and U.S. Department of Energy to release a Federal Letter of Support for green infrastructure and the Collaborative.

FedCenter is now on Facebook! Become a fan and follow us on Facebook, where you'll find valuable information that you need to help meet your environmental stewardship and compliance obligations. To follow us on Facebook, go to https://facebook.com/fedcenter.

The policy commits the Agency to work with states, tribes, and local communities to increase their resilience to extreme weather events and prepare for the impacts of climate change. The policy is an update of the EPA policy first issued in June 2011.

This is the first education module in a series of three developed by the USDA's Climate Change Resources Center. It gives a brief overview of the climate system, greenhouse gases, climate models, current climate change impacts, and future projections. There is a 14-question activity at the end of the module, and users who complete the activity will receive a printable certificate with their name and the date completed. The expected time commitment for this module is about 20 minutes, plus the activity. Time spent exploring the many outward links and interactive features within the module will be at the user's discretion.

Developed by National Climate Assessment and Development Advisory Committee (NCADAC), the full report of the National Climate Assessment provides an in-depth look at climate change impacts on the U.S. It details the multitude of ways climate change is already affecting and will increasingly affect the lives of Americans. The report is available to download and can be explored interactively through USGCRP's website.

EPA has released its 19th annual report of overall U.S. greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, showing a 3.4 percent decrease in 2012 from 2011. The Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks presents a national-level overview of annual greenhouse gas emissions since 1990.

The average global temperature for 2013 tied as the fourth warmest year since record keeping began in 1880, according to NOAA scientists. It also marked the 37th consecutive year with a global temperature above the 20th century average. The last below-average annual temperature was 1976. Including 2013, all 13 years of the 21st century (2001-2013) rank among the 15 warmest in the 134-year period of record. The three warmest years on record are 1998, 2005, and 2010. This analysis is from NOAA's National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, North Carolina.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released its annual Climate Protection Partnerships report for 2012, highlighting the steps more than 21,000 organizations across the United States have taken to reduce greenhouse gas pollution while achieving significant environmental and economic benefits.

(WASHINGTON, Nov. 15, 2013) As part of President Obama's Climate Action Plan, the Obama Administration today announced an interagency National Drought Resilience Partnership to help communities better prepare for future droughts and reduce the impact of drought events on livelihoods and the economy. Responding to requests from communities, businesses, and farmers and ranchers, the National Drought Resilience Partnership will make it easier to access Federal drought resources, and will help link information such as monitoring, forecasts, outlooks, and early warnings with longer-term drought resilience strategies in critical sectors such as agriculture, municipal water systems, energy, recreation, tourism and manufacturing.

The U.S. EPA recognized two federal facilities with the ENERGY STAR Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Award for their highly-efficient CHP systems, which increase the reliability of their electricity supply while reducing carbon pollution that causes climate change. The awards, which demonstrate how federal agencies are reducing carbon pollution in support of the President's Climate Action Plan. The winners were the Marine Corps Logistics Base (MCLB) Albany, Albany, Ga and the National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C.

(WASHINGTON, D.C., November 5, 2013) The White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) today announced the fourth annual winners of the GreenGov Presidential Awards, which honor Federal civilian and military personnel as well as agency teams, facilities, and programs that have taken innovative steps to reduce energy use and carbon pollution, curb waste, and save taxpayer money in Federal agency operations. At a White House ceremony, senior Administration officials recognized the eight award winners for exemplifying President Obama's charge to lead by example and demonstrating extraordinary achievement in the pursuit of the President's 2009 Executive Order on Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy and Economic Performance (Executive Order 13514). Click here for the full announcement.
UPDATE Nov. 18: 2013 winner announcement with photo gallery is now available here.

In support of President Obama's Climate Action Plan and Executive Order on Preparing the United States for the Impacts of Climate Change announced today, the Implementation Plans provide detailed information about the actions EPA plans to take across the country to help communities adapt to a changing climate. All comments are due by 3 January 2014.

U.S. Energy Information Administration has released its online analysis of 2012 energy-related carbon dioxide emissions. It indicates U.S. carbon dioxide emissions from the consumption of fossil fuels were 5,290 million metric tons carbon dioxide in 2012, a decrease of almost 4 percent from the 2011 level.

To develop this report, watershed modeling was conducted in 20 large U.S. watersheds to characterize the sensitivity of streamflow, nutrient (nitrogen and phosphorus), and sediment loading to a range of plausible mid-21st century climate change and urban development scenarios. The report also provides an improved understanding of methodological challenges associated with integrating existing tools (e.g., climate models, downscaling approaches, and watershed models) and data sets to address these scientific questions.

The EPA's Clean Air Excellence Awards Program is open to both public and private entities. Entries are limited to efforts related to air quality in the United States. All submissions of entries for the Clean Air Excellence Awards Program must be postmarked by 27 September 2013.

FedCenter has compiled a topical index of Federally-sponsored and non-profit mobile applications that may be of interest to the Federal environmental community. Mobile applications are those tools and information resources that have been specifically developed for your mobile devices, such as smartphone, tablet, or other Internet-connected hand-held device. The directory will be maintained daily to keep you abreast of any new and useful mobile applications the federal community releases.

The United States has the potential to store a mean of 3,000 metric gigatons of carbon dioxide (CO2) in geologic basins throughout the country, according to the first-ever detailed national geologic carbon sequestration assessment released today by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). This assessment goes further than all previous assessments in considering the viability of sequestration. For example, all areas with groundwater sources that are considered freshwater by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards were eliminated from consideration for carbon storage resource potential in this assessment. For more details on the parameters of the assessments and the results, check out the website.

President Obama lays out his vision for the steps we need to take to prepare our country for the impacts of climate change and lead the global effort to fight it. A video of the speech will be available after the speech is presented on Tuesday, 25 June 2013 at 1:55 EST.

This training series consists of three modules designed to help create a Great Lakes region that is "climate ready." Toward this end, these modules provide stakeholders and decision makers with clear information about Great Lakes climate, as well as what we need to adapt to, why, and how. This project was sponsored by the Great Lakes Sea Grant Network and the NOAA Great Lakes Regional Collaboration Team.

The 18th annual report of overall U.S. greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions showed a 1.6 percent decrease in 2011 from the previous year. Recent trends can be attributed to multiple factors including reduced emissions from electricity generation, improvements in fuel efficiency in vehicles with reductions in miles traveled, and year-to-year changes in the prevailing weather.

This Climate Adaptation Strategy provides a roadmap of key steps needed over the next five years to reduce the current and expected impacts of climate change on our natural resources, which include: changing species distributions and migration patterns, the spread of wildlife diseases and invasive species, the inundation of coastal habitats with rising sea levels, changing productivity of our coastal oceans, and changes in freshwater availability. It provides specific voluntary steps that agencies and partners can take in the coming years to reduce costly damages and protect the health of our communities and economy. The strategy does not prescribe any mandatory activities for government or nongovernmental entities, nor suggest any regulatory actions. An intergovernmental steering committee that included representatives from 15 federal agencies, five state fish and wildlife agencies, and two inter-tribal commissions oversaw development of the strategy with support from the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies.

EPA has released a 2012 Highlights of Progress report, which provides a summary of the major climate change-related accomplishments of EPA's national and regional water programs in 2012. This is the fourth climate change progress report for the National Water Program and the first progress report organized around the five long-term programmatic vision areas described in the National Water Program 2012 Strategy: Response to Climate Change, which are water infrastructure; watersheds and wetlands; coastal and ocean waters; water quality; and, working with Tribes. The National Water Program 2012 Strategy: Response to Climate Change released in December 2012 was an update to the initial climate change and water strategy from 2008. The 2012 Strategy describes long-term goals for the management of sustainable water resources for future generations in light of climate change and is intended to be a road map to guide programmatic planning.

(WASHINGTON, D.C., February 7, 2013) – Continuing the Obama Administration's commitment to lead by example and cut waste, pollution, and costs in Federal operations, Federal agencies today released their 2012 Strategic Sustainability Performance Plans. President Obama signed Executive Order 13514 on Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance in October 2009, setting aggressive targets for reducing waste and pollution in Federal operations by 2020. The Sustainability Plans build on three years of progress under the Executive Order and provide an overview of how agencies are saving taxpayer dollars, reducing carbon emissions, cutting waste, and saving energy.

EPA has released its Climate Change Indicators in the United States 2012 report. This report updates the Agency's initial climate-indicators report, which was published in 2010. It contains information about 26 key indicators that together show what climate change looks like in the United States. The report also highlights some of the public health and environmental impacts that are already happening today.

WASHINGTON (August 22, 2011) – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is launching a new tool to allow 28 industrial sectors to submit their 2010 greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution data electronically. Prior to being finalized, more than1,000 stakeholders, including industry associations, states and NGOs tested the electronic GHG Reporting Tool (e-GGRT) to ensure clarity and user-friendliness.