When the Northwest Climate Science Center called, the University of Montana answered.

As a result of a rigorous scientific review, the U.S. Department of the Interior accepted UM as an official partner in the Northwest climate science consortium, along with Boise State, Washington State and Western Washington universities.

Tom DeLuca, dean of the College of Forestry and Conservation at UM, said Thursday that the program and its partners look to develop measurable science to protect natural resources from climate change.

“Our college leverages global and regional climate information for specific sectors – from local and regional partnerships with food producers, to global modeling efforts,” said DeLuca. “This is a great opportunity for us to help stakeholders adapt climate products to their needs through the center.”

The Northwest CSC is one of eight regional climate science centers dedicated to delivering science that helps wildlife, natural resources and people adapt to a changing climate.

DeLuca said the national network also includes several host agreements with the Southeast Climate Science Center, based in North Carolina, and the Alaska Climate Science Center, based in Anchorage.

Such partnerships ensure access to a broad range of scientific expertise to produce strong science, according to Amy Snover, who heads the group from the University of Washington.

“Our new Northwest CSC consortium will focus on helping our region better understand the changes that lie ahead, and develop sound resource management strategies in light of those changes,” Snover said.