Download Climate Change Adaptation

Capability Statement
Climate Change Adaptation & Mitigation
The global climate is changing, and a large part of that can be attributed to
anthropogenic activity. While that was a controversial statement several years ago,
today it is widely accepted that changes are happening and human emissions of Green
House Gasses (GHGs) are a cause. There is a mounting weight of concurring
evidence. Accelerating changes are occurring in vital aspects of weather, climate and
environment. Yet there is uncertainty about the specific extent and type of change that
will occur in specific places. All of these factors, plus the possibility of monumentally
negative consequences, make a case for taking prudent action now.
Climate Changes Underway
The Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change and the Fourth Assessment Report
of the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) argue that climate change is likely to
have profound and accelerating effects, including among others:
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more extreme temperatures,
less predictable weather extremes,
more floods and droughts,
expanding deserts and arid lands,
increasingly scarce and polluted water resources,
shrinking wetlands,
rising sea levels,
expanding coastal salinisation,
dropping groundwater tables, and
reductions in agricultural productivity.
Such changes in our physical environment can cause great disturbances to the supply of
food, water and energy and to the access of people to them. They can lead to extensive
damage to infrastructure in vulnerable areas, such as coastal lowlands and flood plains. They
can disrupt the livelihoods of millions and exacerbate problems of low agricultural production,
deforestation, migration of displaced persons and urbanization.
What should be done?
Global climate change requires increasingly rapid and cross-sectoral coordination, sharing of
information, integrated strategies and prompt action. Actions are needed to both mitigate and
adapt to climate change. In order to develop strategies to adapt to climate change,
governments need to identify vulnerabilities to climate change, select options for adaptation
and implement and evaluate an adaptation strategy. For formulating effective adaptation
strategies, a five-step process is suggested.
Five steps for adaptation
Step 1: Assess vulnerability
strategy
There is an urgent need for each country to better understand how severe the future effects
of climate change will be. There is a need to assess human and environmental vulnerability in
different geographical and socio-economic settings which in turn depends on the level of risk,
sensitivity, adaptability, and resilience to climate change impacts. The challenge is to
understand what is happening and what is likely to happen in specific countries as a basis for
preparing action plans. Vulnerability to climate change is the degree to which these systems
are susceptible to, and unable to cope with, adverse impacts (IPCC 4th Assessment Report).
Assessing vulnerability requires looking at:
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The magnitude of impacts,
The timing of impacts - will they occur in the short term (i.e. in 2030) or long term (2100),
The persistence and reversibility of impacts,
The likelihood of impacts (many impacts are )
The potential for adaptation
The geographic and socio-economic distributional aspects of impacts
The importance of the systems at risk.
Step 2: Prepare institutional framework
Countries need to assess the extent to which their policy, legal, regulatory and organizational
framework is suitable for identifying and responding to vulnerabilities to climate change. This
should include all sectors with climate change vulnerabilities and assign roles for assistance.
It should further include setting up a framework to enable effective development and
implementation of a mitigation and/or adaptation strategy. This may include enabling crosssectoral problem solving and negotiation, developing alternative dispute resolution
processes, and preparing stakeholders for involvement in adaptation processes. It will also
include setting up effective and timely processes of decision making, implementation and
adjustment.
Step 3: Identify, assess and select elements of an adaptation strategy
In this step the adaptation strategy is formulated. This may include mitigation measures,
which can include measures such as preventing the loss of peatlands and forests (both of
which are major storages of carbon). For effective adaptation, the objective is to find all
necessary and feasible means to reduce vulnerability to climate change. This can be done in
five ways, by: 1) preventing negative effects, 2) strengthening resilience, 3) preparing to
minimize negative effects, 4) responding quickly to extreme events, and 5) facilitating
recovery after extreme events. After all relevant elements of an adaptation strategy have
been identified, stakeholders prioritise and operationalise how elements will be implemented,
and schedule implementation. Special attention is needed to ensure protection of the poor
and most vulnerable members of society.
Step 4: Implement the adaptation strategy
With coordination between sectors, high-level political commitment, and direction and
representative participation of stakeholders, mitigation and adaptation strategies are
implemented. Public awareness raising and capacity building activities are essential.
Step 5: Monitor, evaluate and adjust the strategy
Successful implementation will require a comprehensive and timely monitoring and
evaluation of implementation of the adaptation strategy. This must be well connected to an
authoritative decision-making body that is able to make rapid decisions about revising the
adaptation strategy.
Synergies between adaptation and mitigation
Major challenges brought about by global climate change require increasingly rapid and
cross-sectoral production of information and responses. While increasing climate change
adaptation capacity is essential for developing countries, we believe that climate change
mitigation should be taken into account as well. Adaptation is closely linked to sustainable
development, food security and livelihoods, while mitigation is related to international
obligations, and must make economic sense at local/farm level to be realised.
Euroconsult Mott MacDonald is active in
the key areas of climate change
There are various strategies for combining adaptation and mitigation, some providing
investigation and management and can
multiple benefits and synergies while others require complex trade-offs. Adaptation-
provide services in the following areas:
mitigation synergies or trade-offs in among others the agriculture, forestry and environment
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Environmental impact assessment
sector at the global, regional and local levels are scarcely documented. We believe it is
of adaptation strategies
necessary to create and support synergies that can contribute to sustainable development.
Climate change vulnerability and
Land and Water Management, Agriculture and Climate Change are core activities of
impact assessments
Euroconsult Mott MacDonald, and we can provide support to mainstreaming climate change
Development of Green House Gas
adaptation and mitigation into agriculture & water policies, programs and investments.
(GHG) emissions projections and
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GHG abatement options
Where trade-offs are significant, Euroconsult Mott MacDonald can provide guidance in
Preparation of investment projects
project and policy development which is essential to decrease harmful impacts. We can
in the form of Nationally Appropriate
also assist in developing mechanisms that specifically reward synergies among mitigation,
Mitigation Actions (NAMAs)
adaptation and development activities, an example being payments for environmental
Compile and analyse key GHG and
services.
socio-economic data
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Formulate & implement adaptation
Areas where Euroconsult Mott MacDonald can help
and mitigation strategies
Euroconsult Mott MacDonald (EMM) has experience in implementing both adaptation and
Help governments fulfil their
mitigation activities. We have carried out economic risk assessments of the potential
respective Measurement, Reporting
consequences of climate change for environmental assessments. This includes projects for
and Verification (MRV) obligations
integrated coastal zone management (e.g. rising water levels and changing species
(for example under the UNFCCC
distribution), river system management (e.g. flood management and infrastructure protection
and REDD+ mechanisms)
and rehabilitation), land and forestry management, and sustainable irrigation development
Climate change assessments for
and management. We have experience in conducting vulnerability assessments. We have
coastal zones, small island states,
assisted in developing mitigation and adaptation strategies and in helping governments
river basins & irrigation systems
implementing these in Africa, PR China and South and Southeast Asia. This includes water
Developing legal & regulatory
management, forest preservation and protection of rangelands and peatlands. EMM has
frameworks
extensive experience with monitoring and evaluation systems and their design for improving
Monitoring & evaluation of water,
planning and timely decision making. Euroconsult Mott MacDonald is ready to assist
land & environmental management
governments and other clients to develop timely and appropriate strategies to adapt to and
strategies under climate change
mitigate impending climate changes.
Identify gaps and needs in climate
policies and plans
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Identify climate change mitigation
investment opportunities
Contact us
Mrs Caroline la Chapelle
T
+ 31 26 3577371
M
+31 6 27060595
F
+31 26 3577577
E [email protected]
www.ecbmb.nl