Frontline Community Issues
While everyone, everywhere is affected by climate change, some communities are facing the first, and worst, impacts of climate-related water management challenges.
These “frontline communities” are typically economically disadvantaged and/or have a legacy of racial discrimination. They are far flung, occurring in big cities, small towns, villages, and neighborhoods — in indigenous communities, Appalachia, the U.S.-Mexico border, California’s Central Valley, the Deep South, and in urban centers nationwide.
The utilities and agencies serving frontline communities face unique challenges. This section outlines some solution pathways including policies to elevate frontline community issues at the state level, consolidation and regionalization, federal grant and loan programs particularly relevant for frontline communities, and growing NGO resources specifically targeting frontline community water challenges.
