How Monitoring Informs Park Conservation in a Changing Climate

When coupled with climate trends, long-term monitoring can help us understand what to expect over the next few decades and provide park managers with time and tools to plan for a range of scenarios. With the information we have right now, the NPS Inventory & Monitoring Division can describe how sensitive and vulnerable ecosystems and species are to climate factors such as warming temperatures, drought, and the shift in seasons. We can model and forecast trends into the future to help park managers explore climate change scenarios. Managing parks within the context of a changing climate is where we are—now—and we can provide park managers the specifically tailored information and tools they need for decision making.

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  Climate Adaptation Planning

  How long-term monitoring helps inform park-based climate adaptation planning.

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  Climate Trends and Models

  Climate information from an extensive network of weather stations is the basis for understanding climate trends and extreme events.

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  Vulnerability Assessments

  Species and ecosystems respond differently to climate change. Long-term monitoring helps identify where and when they are most vulnerable.

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  Management Action

  Long-term monitoring provides park managers with information they need to make difficult decisions.

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  Remote Sensing and Climate Change

  In some cases, remote sensing can be a useful tool to see bigger patterns of climate change on the landscape.

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  More About Climate Change

  Learn more about what we are learning from long-term monitoring about how parks are impacted by climate change.