Cost of Climate Impact on Boulder County

The true cost of climate change extends beyond physical impacts to infrastructure. Public health, ecology, and economic growth are also impacted by climate change. Boulder County required a study to determine a broad assessment of climate impacts from infrastructure to pest infestation and public health. For each sector, an adaptation cost was set as the goal to develop a true cost of climate change.

Resilient Analytics was the lead consultant in this effort tasked with developing the adaptation functions to include a broad set of sectors. The team was challenged with collaborating across multiple government agencies to establish agreed-upon methodologies for each sector. The team was additionally tasked with working with legal advisors to provide input to potential legal action.

Resilient Analytics developed a suite of new functions to determine adaptation costs for each sector. Cost assessments were developed for public health impacts, urban canopy risks, neighborhood road maintenance, and mountain conditions among others. The team delivered assessments for each sector, as well as key risks for the county and the costs associated with adaptation strategies for these risks.