Obama pledges $1bn for climate change adaptation

President Barack Obama has unveiled a $1 billion fund in his 2015 budget to help communities in the United States adapt and mitigate the effects of climate change.

The fund, announced on Friday in Fresno, California, is part of Obama's pledge to increase assistance to the most populous U.S. state.

California is currently dealing with its worst drought in recorded history, which is threatening its energy production, agriculture industry, and various industries.

The fund forms part of the President's Climate Action Plan which was announced in June 2013 and, as opposed to other elements of the Plan, the fund requires Congressional approval, which makes its future more ambiguous.

The proposal will be formally introduced when Obama releases his fiscal 2015 budget in March.

According to the White House, the aim of the fund will be to assist communities in dealing with floods, drought, heat waves, and wildfires; recent disasters including Superstorm Sandy in 2012; the April 2011 tornado outbreak in Southern, Midwestern, and Northeastern United States; and California wildfires in October 2007 have caused a sense of urgency in the Predient's administration to implement tools including the fund.

Funds would be targeted at research on how to better prepare for climate change-related effects like rising sea levels and extreme temperatures and encouraging local initiatives. Other investments would include building sea walls and more resilient electricity delivery systems to protect vulnerable cities and towns.

The concept of the fund is based on a recommendation made in December 2012 by the think tank Center for American Progress.