By providing a broad overview of needs in the Missouri Basin, this effort can help guide federal investments in climate services for the basin by providing a blueprint for where services are needed the most. The examination of stakeholder needs involves developing a comprehensive list of documents where stakeholders have expressed the need for climate information within the Missouri River Basin, followed by a set of key stakeholder interviews aimed at filling in the gaps from the initial document review. Rather than beginning an assessment with the more traditional formal interview process, this project began with a systematic examination of stakeholder needs for climate information as demonstrated in existing documentation. (This method was used effectively in a previous project cataloging needs throughout the Western Water Assessment RISA region.) Reviewing previously published documents allows for the development of an understanding of baseline climate related needs over an extended time period.  Conducting this type of needs analysis prior to interviewing stakeholders also helps avoid fatigue among stakeholders, a recognized informal and formal impediment to engaging relevant stakeholders in developing necessary and applicable research portfolios. The output of this project is intended to inform future work by Doug Kluck, the NOAA Central Region Climate Services Director, in coordinating regional climate services.

Final Project Report