Town of Groveland Receives Grant to Support Climate Change Preparedness

Finance and Personnel Director Denise Dembkoski is pleased to announce that the Town of Groveland has received a state grant to support its assessment of how climate change will impact the community.

The $25,000 grant, awarded in concert with the Commonwealth’s observance of Earth Day, will enable the town to develop a resiliency plan through the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Program.

The program is an effort by Governor Charlie Baker’s administration to provide municipalities with technical support, climate change data and planning tools to identify hazards and develop strategies to improve preparedness and resilience.

With the grant funding, Groveland will evaluate its own vulnerabilities related to climate change and determine its best course forward to mitigate those risks. The grant is the result of an application submitted by Town Planner Rebecca Oldham.

Groveland’s effort will include representatives from all town departments, as well as the community, as it looks inward to determine what needs to be done to defray the impacts of the projected rise in sea levels and associated flooding. With the grant money, Groveland will pursue public meeting listening sessions and workshops, as well as study the work that will be needed to make climate change-related updates to its bylaws.

“This grant will enable us to work as a community to take essential proactive steps to ensure that we are as prepared as possible to face the inevitable impacts of climate change,” Oldham said. “I’m grateful for the support of the Baker-Polito administration on this critical issue, and am looking forward to building a stronger understanding of the challenges that lie ahead for us.”

Groveland was one of 27 communities statewide to benefit from the current round of funding under this initiative.

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