Weymouth awarded $25K grant for climate vulnerability assessment and planning

Weymouth, MA – Mayor Robert Hedlund announced today that Weymouth has been awarded $25,000 in funding through the state’s Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) Program to assess the community’s vulnerability to climate change. Mayor Hedlund joined Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Matthew Beaton for an announcement of the state’s first round of MVP grants in Wareham on June 8th. Over $1 million was awarded to 71 communities, representing 20 percent of the state’s municipalities.

“Planning for the impacts of climate change protects our natural and built environments,” said Mayor Hedlund. “By being part of the new MVP Program, Weymouth will receive the data and technical assistance we need to take on the challenges of climate change and design better adaptation solutions to build resilience. We are thankful for this chance to work with the Commonwealth and to take a step forward in addressing climate-change impacts here in Weymouth.”

The MVP grant and designation program builds on Governor Baker’s Executive Order 569, signed in September of 2016, to help cities and towns prepare for climate change and build resilience against extreme weather and climate-related hazards. As part of the MVP Program, Weymouth will complete a baseline climate-change vulnerability assessment and develop prioritized actions to reduce risk and build community resilience. Results of the program will be used to update and inform Weymouth’s local planning documents, public works projects, and future grant applications.

Weymouth’s MVP process will be coordinated by Conservation Commissioner Frank Singleton, in collaboration with a core team of Town staff from the departments of planning, conservation, public works, and emergency management. Technical assistance will be delivered by a state-certified MVP provider using a standardized toolkit called the Community Resilience Building (CRB) Framework, and newly developed climate projections and data from the Northeast Climate Science Center at UMass-Amherst.

Upon successful completion of the CBR Framework, Weymouth will be designated a “Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Program Community,” or MVP Community, which will increase the Town’s standing in future competitive grant opportunities available through the Commonwealth.

“We are thrilled to be able to offer this program to so many communities in every corner of the state,” said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Matthew Beaton in a statement on June 8th. “The MVP Program is a critical component of implementing Governor Baker’s Executive Order 569 and by working with so many of our local communities we will be able to create a strong network of cities and towns taking leadership to address climate change. We look forward to working together to better understand the local impacts of climate change and to plan and implement the best strategies to build community resilience.”

Governor Baker’s Executive Order 569, Establishing an Integrated Climate Change Strategy for the Commonwealth, directs multiple state agencies to develop and implement a comprehensive statewide climate adaptation plan using the best available data on existing and projected climate change impacts to protect Massachusetts’ natural and built environments. Recognizing that many adaptation solutions are local in nature, a key commitment of Executive Order 569 is to assist cities and towns across the state as they prepare for the impacts of climate change.