Demonstrating NOAA's Service Delivery Model with Extreme Precipitation Products

Under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) Regional Climate Services (RCS) program is leading a project focused on integrating service delivery into the development of extreme precipitation products to advance NOAA’s strategic goals. The Support for Climate Resilience Planning and Innovation (SCRPI) project works across the nation to collect feedback from end-users and integrate that input into the development and delivery of new extreme precipitation products, such as Atlas 15 and Probable Maximum Precipitation (PMP). Through SCRPI, NOAA will demonstrate how the Service Delivery Model can be used to improve the impact and usability of products and services developed across the agency. This project will also provide recommendations to improve the integration of equity-oriented engagement into product development to ensure outputs are useful, usable, and used.

SCRPI focuses on two “super-users” of extreme precipitation data: the water resources sector (including floodplain managers, water utilities, and stormwater managers) and the transportation sector (including the different transportation modes affected by extreme precipitation). NCEI has long-standing relationships with these sectors and their partners at the regional and local level, and is working to impactfully engage with these users. In addition, underserved communities across the nation–including Tribal Nations and Indigenous communities; rural areas; and residents of Hawaii, Alaska, and U.S. Territories–are a priority to engage through this effort. The RCS program is piloting a variety of approaches to partner with these end-users and integrate their priorities into the product development lifecycle.

This talk will discuss the initial approach the SCRPI team is taking, including both national consistencies and customized region-specific audiences and needs. Some of these activities include engagement in Montana around the release of Atlas 15 pilot data; setting up national communities of practice around extreme precipitation; and partnering with regional organizations and networks to understand extreme precipitation priorities and challenges.