YOUNGSTOWN — Extreme weather events haven’t had a disastrous effect on Mary Krupa’s home, but she has noticed a few concerning trends over the past several years.

“When we do get rain, it seems like a more extensive rain,” Krupa, of Youngstown, said. “I’ve had an over-saturated yard that’s spongy and damp basement walls, but not a flood, but 10 years ago, I never had these issues.”

Such issues for her came to light, courtesy of the wet May and June much of the Mahoning Valley and northeast Ohio experienced that also caused extensive flooding in some areas.

While it may be impossible to quantify the degree to which climate change has played in some of the weather patterns of which Krupa has been aware, suffice it to say that it has likely been a contributor. That was one of the reasons Krupa and about 25 others attended an informational forum and discussion Thursday called “Reimagining Communities: A Conversation about Coastal Resilience” at the Newport branch of the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County, 3730 Market St., on the South Side.

Hosting the gathering was the Northeast Ohio Black Health Coalition, a Cleveland-based nonprofit organization established in 2011 that is committed to addressing structural, social, environmental and behavioral health determinants, especially in vulnerable and underserved communities.

Thursday’s forum was the fourth of nine similar gatherings — one each in Mahoning, Trumbull Cuyahoga, Medina, Lake, Ashtabula, Lorain, Geauga and Summit counties.

In addition, the events are part of a three-year project that runs through September 2027 and is aimed at gathering information from concerned citizens about what they feel is needed for greater resilience to better handle extreme weather, Yvonka Hall, the NEOBHC’s executive director, noted.

Collected feedback from the county gatherings will be fed into a report next year, then its findings will be established in the final year, Hall said.

For example, when it comes to dealing with extreme heat and cold, communities that have an abundance of tree canopies, greenspaces and a consistent warm- and cold-weather plan tend to be better off, she explained. Hall added that another important component for resilience is trusted community and faith-based leaders to whom those potentially in harm’s way can turn.

Before filling out a community survey on the topic, participants heard presentations from a few representatives with The Ohio State University’s Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Evaluation Studies program who did not want their names used.

Attendees who filled out the surveys were asked to state what places in their communities are most important to them, and whether those locations are resilient against extreme weather; what areas they feel need additional tree coverage to mitigate the effects of heat, such as playgrounds, schools, sports fields and community centers; and which resources they wish to see in their communities to make them increasingly resilient.

Drastic environmental changes in northeast Ohio have included more intense rain and droughts, greater heat events that are more impactful on the Great Lakes and poorer air quality from wildfires, including those in Canada the last few years, one of the representatives said.

Another factor is the heat-island effect, where, in some cases, cities can be up to 3 degrees warmer than their surrounding suburban areas, the HOPES representative explained. She added that between 1981 and 2000, the Mahoning Valley averaged six 90-degree days per year, while in 2020, the region experienced 22 such days.

Climate change and overall well-being are tightly intertwined — including in the mental health arena, with results that can include increased anxiety, depression, stress, possible post-traumatic stress disorder and even substance abuse, one of the representatives noted.

Key ways to combat the effects of high heat and humidity while building greater resilience are to have a higher number of tree canopies and cooling stations, along with an established plan for those affected to know where they can go to seek relief, attendees were told

Investing in green infrastructure and a stormwater management plan, as well as having a decrease in impermeable surfaces, are sound ways to mitigate the effects of flooding, one of the representatives noted.

To that end, Boardman Township has undertaken a $47 million stormwater project to address and combat longtime chronic flooding, especially in the Cranberry Run Creek neighborhoods and the low-lying Boardman Plaza on U.S. Route 224.

Other, more general tips for building resilience and bolstering preparedness for extreme weather events include having an emergency kit at home with important items such as personal documents and medications, communicating with neighbors, planning evacuation routes, maintaining important phone numbers and knowing who to call in the event of an emergency, a HOPES representative said.