
The NPS Climate Change Response Strategy was published in September 2010 to give direction on how to address the impacts of climate change. Goals and objectives are described under four integrated components: Science, Adaptation, Mitigation, and Communication
Damage to cultural heritage from outdoor weathering is a perpetual, ubiquitous challenge which grows in complexity as cultural resource managers begin to recognize and anticipate impacts from climate change. In the field of climatology, scientists have documented a pattern of global warming with broad and dire implications for all the earth–including our cultural heritage. While climate change is most precisely understood as a long-term process, we can observe indicators of change in our environments today. Cultural resources in the United States are already being faced with the following problems:
- Flooding from increased precipitation
- More frequent phase changes (for example: freeze/thaw cycling) over shorter periods of time
- Extreme droughts and occasions of wildfire
- Invasive species moving into formerly cooler climates
- Erosion caused by storm surges in combination with rising sea levels
- And more…
This page will serve as a collection of resources on how cultural resources and their managers across the globe are reacting and adjusting to climate change. Topics covered will include: mitigation of emissions, adaptation to new climates, and contribution to public knowledge on efficient energy use.
Map: Climate Change and Cultural Resources
Image | Name | Date |
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![]() | 2020 Hurricane Season Preparedness for Cultural Institutions This is a pre-recorded webinar featuring moderator Steve Pine with presenters Dan Riley, Jason Church, and Melody Gayeski. All materials used by our presenters will be available for download. Steve Pine is Senior Conservator of Decorative Arts at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. He has assisted in recovery assessments and cleanup of public and private ... | 09/18/2020 |
![]() | Condition Assessment Tools for Aid in Disaster Response and Recovery NCPTT has released updated Building and Site Condition Assessment forms and a database for use in documenting the devastating effects of natural disasters on historic properties. FEMA’s Environmental Planning and Historic Preservation Program are already putting these tools to good use to document effects of the April tornado outbreaks throughout Alabama. | 08/26/2020 |
![]() | MRDAM: Mississippi River Delta Archeological Mitigation Project Community, Culture, Conservation, Coast About The Mississippi River Delta has hundreds of archeological sites that cover thousands of years of human occupation. Archeological sites are rapidly disappearing due to the effects of climate change such as sea level rise, as well as storm surge, and modern development. Levees and floodgates provide flood control and aid in navigation. ... | 02/21/2020 |
![]() | 2020 PTT Grants Call for Proposals Notice of 2020 Funding Opportunity The Preservation Technology and Training (PTT) Grants program provides funding for innovative research that develops new technologies or adapts existing technologies to preserve cultural resources. Grant recipients undertake innovative research and produce technical reports which respond to national needs in the field of historic preservation. Since the inception of the grants program ... | 01/22/2020 |
![]() | Salts in Masonry: Experiment & Treatment Hello! My name is Silvia Lob, I am an intern at the NCPTT, and I am working on a project to evaluate commercially available products marketed to prevent efflorescence on masonry. I have a masters degree in physical chemistry from the University Pierre and Marie Curie in Paris, and I have always had an interest ... | 08/08/2018 |
![]() | Assessing Climate Vulnerability in Cultural Landscapes Assessing Climate Vulnerability in Cultural Landscapes of the Pacific Northwest This presentation is part of A Century of Design in the Parks: Preserving the Built Environment in National and State Parks, June 21-23, 2016, Santa Fe, New Mexico. Abstract and Presenter’s Bio Robert Melnick: …and I wanna also offer my extreme thanks to Kirk, Mary, and Debbie, and ... | 11/20/2017 |
![]() | Study of Climate Change Impacts on Cultural Landscapes in the Pacific West Region, National Park Service (2017-03) The study of climate change impacts on cultural landscapes in the Pacific West Region (PWR), National Park Service (NPS), was conducted by the Cultural Landscape Research Group (CLRG)+, a unit of the Department of Landscape Architecture at the University of Oregon (UO), in collaboration with the National Park Service. Working with climate scientists, archeologists, ecologists, ... | 02/16/2017 |
![]() | Climate Change at Dry Tortugas The following case study is part of a forthcoming NPS handbook on climate change entitled ”Climate Change and Cultural Resources: Impact Assessments and Case Studies.” The original author is Caitlin Smith. Constructed on a spit of land off the southern tip of Florida, historic Fort Jefferson is the central cultural feature of Dry Tortugas National Park. Often ... | 09/19/2013 |
![]() | Climate Change at El Malpais El Malpais National Monument was established for resources associated with ancient lava flows in west-central New Mexico. Artifacts of Zuni and Acoma nations dating from AD 800s to 1200s are located at El Malpais, including a Chaco-style great house, a great kiva, smaller pueblos, field houses, prehistoric reservoirs, and petrogylphs. A number of archaeological sites ... | 09/19/2013 |
![]() | Climate Change at El Morro El Morro National Monument in New Mexico is the home of archaeological sites and inscriptions ranging in date from the 13th to 19th c., and a dramatic landscape characterized by Zuni Sandstone cliffs that rise 200 feet from the valley floor. Use of the site began in the late 1200s when ancestors of Zuni Indians moved onto the outcropping, ... | 09/18/2013 |
![]() | Climate Change at Saint-Gaudens Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site contains the historic home, studios and gardens of Augustus Saint-Gaudens, a preeminent sculptor of the Gilded Era and primary member of the Cornish Art Colony. The site’s main house was built circa 1800, and purchased by Charles C. Beamon in 1884. Beamon was an art patron who initiated the Cornish Art ... | 09/16/2013 |
![]() | Climate Change and Cultural Landscapes In April of 2013, the National Park Service Park Cultural Landscapes Program gave a presentation which articulated the NPS Climate Change Response Strategy (CCRS) for Cultural Landscapes. Following the CCRS, the cultural landscape response is divided into four strategies: science, mitigation, adaptation, and communication. Science Cultural Landscape managers are called to “use the best available scientific data and ... | 09/11/2013 |
![]() | Climate Change at Cape Krusenstern The following case study is part of a forthcoming NPS handbook on climate change entitled “Climate Change and Cultural Resources: Impact Assessments and Case Studies.” The original author is Caitlin Smith. In the far corner of northwestern Alaska, Cape Krusenstern National Monument stands testament to some of the oldest evidence of human occupation of the North American ... | 09/10/2013 |
![]() | Climate Change at Wrangell-St. Elias The following case study is part of a forthcoming NPS handbook on climate change entitled “Climate Change and Cultural Resources: Impact Assessments and Case Studies.” The original author is Caitlin Smith. Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve contains a wealth of natural and cultural resources, including significant groupings of Athabascan prehistoric and historic archeological sites. They include ... | 09/09/2013 |
![]() | Climate Change at Kaloko-Honokohau The following case study is part of a forthcoming NPS handbook on climate change entitled “Climate Change and Cultural Resources: Impact Assessments and Case Studies.” The original author is Caitlin Smith. Kaloko-Honok?hau National Historical Park lies along the rugged western coastline of the Big Island of Hawai’i. Although the landscape is uninhabited today, the park commemorates the ... | 09/09/2013 |
![]() | Climate Change at Golden Gate The following case study is part of a forthcoming NPS handbook on climate change entitled “Climate Change and Cultural Resources: Impact Assessments and Case Studies.” The original author is Caitlin Smith. Amidst the urban environment of San Francisco, Golden Gate National Recreation Area embodies a rich and diverse cultural landscape chronicling over 200 years of American history. ... | 09/09/2013 |
![]() | Climate Change at Bandelier The following case study is part of a forthcoming NPS handbook on climate change entitled “Climate Change and Cultural Resources: Impact Assessments and Case Studies.” The original author is Caitlin Smith. In the Jemez Mountains of northern New Mexico, Bandelier National Monument stands as one of the richest collections of cultural history in the American Southwest. Bandelier’s ... | 09/09/2013 |
![]() | Climate Change at Rocky Mountain The following case study is part of a forthcoming NPS handbook on climate change entitled “Climate Change and Cultural Resources: Impact Assessments and Case Studies.” The original author is Caitlin Smith. With its lush valley meadows and craggy snow capped peaks, Rocky Mountain National Park is best known for its remarkable scenic beauty and mountain recreation. However, ... | 09/09/2013 |
![]() | Climate Change at Knife River Indian Villages The following case study is part of a forthcoming NPS handbook on climate change entitled ”Climate Change and Cultural Resources: Impact Assessments and Case Studies.” The original author is Caitlin Smith. At Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site, the relationship between natural and cultural resources is fluid. As such, the effects of climate change on the ... | 09/09/2013 |
![]() | Climate Change at Apostle Islands The following case study is part of a forthcoming NPS handbook on climate change entitled “Climate Change and Cultural Resources: Impact Assessments and Case Studies.” The original author is Caitlin Smith. Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is composed of a 21-island archipelago and a portion of Wisconsin’s Bayfield Peninsula extending out into Lake Superior. The Islands are a ... | 09/09/2013 |
![]() | Climate Change at Gettysburg The following case study is part of a forthcoming NPS handbook on climate change entitled “Climate Change and Cultural Resources: Impact Assessments and Case Studies.” The original author is Caitlin Smith. Battlefields represent an important interface between nature and culture in cultural landscapes. At Gettysburg National Military Park, preserving historic landscape features associated with historic events is ... | 09/09/2013 |
![]() | Climate Change at Assateague Island The following case study is part of a forthcoming NPS handbook on climate change entitled “Climate Change and Cultural Resources: Impact Assessments and Case Studies.” The original author is Caitlin Smith. Assateague Island National Seashore represents one of the most vulnerable sites for cultural resources on the Atlantic Coast. As a barrier island measuring only 46 feet ... | 09/09/2013 |
![]() | English Heritage: Climate Change and Your Home Climate Change and Your Home is a customizable web tool created by English Heritage that provides information on climate change, sustainability, and the UK’s government legislation on saving energy. While much of the site’s information is applicable to any historic home in England, it is also customizable for “traditionally built homes”: homes built with solid wall or ... | 09/06/2013 |
![]() | Scotland’s Coastal Heritage at Risk Project (SCHARP) Scotland’s Coastal Heritage at Risk Project (SCHARP) is a three year venture created by Scottish Coastal Archaeology and the Problem of Erosion (SCAPE) to monitor impacts from coastal erosion in Scotland. As threats of sea level rise and high storm intensity increase, SCAPE strives to document coastal archaeology while it still exists. SCHARP relies on public ... | 09/06/2013 |
Getty Discusses Climate Change, Sustainability, and Cultural Heritage In 2008 and 2011, the Getty Conservation Institute (GCI) held panel discussions on climate change, sustainability, and cultural heritage. Both panels present information on how cultural resource managers can help slow climate change, adapt resources to changing environments, and be a part of sustainable communities. Climate Change and Preserving Cultural Heritage in the 21st Century The first panel considers ... | 08/28/2013 | |
![]() | Atlas of Climate Change The final product of the research project Noah’s Ark: Global Climate Change Impact on Built Heritage and Cultural Landscapes has recently been published. Noah’s Ark, funded by the European Commission, is the premier effort to integrate cultural resource management with climate science research. Participants include experts in climate modeling, atmospheric chemistry, atmospheric physics, materials science, conservation, ... | 08/21/2013 |
![]() | Sample post This is a sample excerpt | 09/04/2012 |