Approach
More frequent flooding events, proliferation of hazard trees from climate change-induced mortality, and other climate change impacts have the potential to cause significant damage to recreational infrastructure. These impacts could reduce the number of available recreational opportunities and operational campgrounds, especially those located in or near floodplains. This could result in safety risks to recreationists who could be unaware of potential hazards, significant damage to the campgrounds and infrastructure themselves, and a concentration of use to available campgrounds and infrastructure that could be less equipped to handle high volumes of visitors. This approach provides both proactive and reactive tactics to address these risks and to incorporate climate-informed considerations into the management of existing campgrounds and other infrastructure supporting recreational opportunities. Tactics can include, for example, converting roads to trails where older roads are under-utilized and unsustainable.
Tactics
- Convert roads to trails where older roads are under-utilized and unsustainable.
- Convert campgrounds to day-use areas or recreational fishing areas where they are under-utilized and unsustainable as campgrounds.
- Build bridges where necessary. Improve existing bridges by increasing the height above waterways or upgrading with stronger materials that can accommodate greater weights.
- Replace downed hazard trees in campgrounds with species that will provide a similar amount of shade, but are better adapted to changing conditions, or replace with shade structures if appropriate.
- Remove hazard trees before and after storm events in the vicinity of recreational infrastructure.
- Install emergency sirens and storm shelters at heavily utilized facilities where appropriate for public safety.
Strategy
Strategy Text
Climate change will impact recreational opportunities and infrastructure such that it may become untenable to retain those opportunities and infrastructure without modification. Many of these opportunities and infrastructure are highly dependent on their setting within a natural area or within a specific context. Ski areas in particular represent an investment in infrastructure that is long-term, place-based, and highly compromised by the effects of a changing climate. This strategy seeks to provide options for re-evaluating past design concepts and for adapting existing opportunities and infrastructure in a way that allows for modification but retains the character of the current recreational experience.
O’Toole, D.; Brandt, L.A.; Janowiak, M.K.; Schmitt, K.M.; Shannon, P.D.; Leopold, P.R.; Handler, S.D.; Ontl, T.A.; Swanston, C.W. Climate Change Adaptation Strategies and Approaches for Outdoor Recreation. Sustainability 2019, 11, 7030.