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Climate Change Adaptation Around the
Baltic Sea – A Policy perspective
ASTRA Conference on Climate Change Adaptation
and Flood Risks in Coastal Areas
Gdansk, 26 October 2006
Lasse Peltonen, CURS/ Helsinki U of Technology
Content of presentation
1. What is Policy?
2. Adaptation policy addresses vulnerabilities
3. Adaptation Policy Framework – How to construct a
climate adaptation policy?
4. Relevant EU policies
5. Observations and examples from the BSR
6. Conclusions
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What is a Policy?
Policy, politics, polity
POLITY – political system, institutional arrangements,
constitution. E.g. representative democracy
POLITICS – political struggle over goals, political action.
E.g. ”power politics”
POLICY – programmes of action; A statement by
government of what it intends to do, such as a law,
regulation, ruling, decision, or order, or a combination of
these E.g. Environmental policy, Social policy, Climate
policy… adaptation policy?
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Where do policies come from?
The policy process view
NEEDS
DEMANDS
1. mobilization
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2. Agenda
setting
ISSUES
DECISIONS
3. Decision
making
OUTPUTS
4. Implementation
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Climate Adaptation Policy…
…refers to actions gaken by governments including
legislation, regulations, and incentives to mandate or
facilitate changes in socio-economic systems aimed at
reducing vulnerability to climate change, including
climate variability and extremes.
Changes can be made in practices, processes, or
structures of systems to projected or actual changes in
climate
Watson R.T. et al. (eds. ) (1996) Impacts, Adaptations and Mitigation of Climate Change. Working
group II, IPCC Second Assessment Report. Cambridge University Press
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Limited,Climate
slower Change, Including climate variability
Mitigation
GHG reduction
Countries, regions,
cities, structures,
Industries,
organisations, homes,
Individuals etc.
characterized by
their
Vunerability
Resilience
Planned
Adaptation
Policy Response
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Adaptation policies
address vulnerabilities
1. Physical vulnerability
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2. Awareness as
adaptive capacity
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3. Social vulnerability
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4. Institutional vulnerability
School buses
not used for
evacuation
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Adaptation Policy Framework
How to construct an adaptation policy?
Adaptation Policy Framework
Developed by the UNDP, mainly used in developing
countries
Provides guidance on designing and implementing
projects that reduce vulnerability to climate change and
seeks to integrate national policy making efforts with a
“bottom-up” movement
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APF: 5 principles
1. Adaptation policy and measures are assessed in a
developmental context;
2. Adaptation to short-term climate variability and extreme
events are explicitly included as a step toward reducing
vulnerability to long-term change;
3. Adaptation occurs at different levels in society, including
the local level;
4. The adaptation strategy and the process by which it is
implemented are equally important; and
5. Building adaptive capacity to cope with current climate is
one way of preparing society to better cope with future
climate
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APF Structure
1. Scope project
Engage stakeholders
3. Characterize future
climate-related risks
4. Develop adaptation
strategy
Increase adaptive capacity
2. Assess current
vulnerability
5. Continue
adaptation process
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APF Policy Questions
to ASTRA
 What kind of policy instruments will reduce vulnerability
to climate change?
 What kind of policy decisions might be influenced by the
project?
 How might project results be introduced onto the local, or
national policy agenda?
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What policy development is taking
place at the EU level?
EU Policies relevant
for CC and regional planning
Water Framework Directive has potential but currently does not
reflect flash floods, cities, nor integrated spatial planning concerns
Floods Directive  clear climate change link
Natura 2000 network & the Habitats Directive  moving
ecosystems? need for a clear approach for the future in relation to
adaptation
Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)  need to integrate CC
Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA)  important tool with
better integration of adaptation concerns in assessments
Structural Funds  new emphasis on risk reduction
The European Spatial Development Perspective and the related
European Spatial Observation Network (ESPON)  ESPON 1.3.1
project on Natural Hazards
ICZM – development
ECCP II – European climate change programme phase II
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How is the BSR prepared
for present climate variability?
ASTRA Winter Storm Study
The Gudrun winter storm in January 2005: was an
extreme weather event that affected almost all of the
participating countries around the Baltic sea.
The storm was exceptional (extent, damages) for the
Baltic Sea Region: fiercest event since 1969
17 people died, hundreds of thousands affected
Damages exceeding EUR 2.5 billion
Wide range of impacts in the BSR countries
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Differing effects
Pärnu, Estonia
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Turku, Finland
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What is the current state of CC
adaptation policies in the BSR?
Preliminary results
from ASTRA (2)
Stakeholder survey (PIK): Stakeholders focused on climate change
mitigation, lack of basic understanding of adaptation
Overview of national policies (ECAT): Policy focus is on mitigation,
not adaptation.
Examples of sectoral policies exist related to climate variability
EU policy is pushing national governments forward (WFD, Floods
Directive)
Only one national adaptation strategy identified (Finnish national CC
adaptation strategy) (Developments in Germany and Denmark)
Climate change adaptation is not (yet) an ”umbrella concept” 
measures may be planned, but not for CC adaptation (”autonomous
adaptation”)
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Example: Swedish EPA
Vulnerability study
Some analysis of CC impacts exists, but little analysis on
vulnerability and adaptation needs
Some actions identified related to present-day climate
variability (e.g. dam safety)
With few exceptions, no concrete adaptation measures
to the future climate were found
Uncertainty about responsibilities of different actors in
relation to CC adaptation: no central authority
responsible for adaptation
Importance of learning from extremes,
Importance of stakeholder dialogue; research & practice
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Conclusions
Adaptation policy:
How far are we?
WANTS
DEMANDS
1. mobilization
ISSUES
2. Agenda
setting
DECISIONS
3. Decision
making
OUTPUTS
4. Implementation
Varies according to sector & region!
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1. Scoping
Are processes
systematic?
2. Assess current
vulnerability
More focus on
event and
impacts than
vulnerability?
3. Characterize future
climate-related risks
4. Develop adaptation
strategy
5. Continue
adaptation process
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Increase adaptive capacity
Engage stakeholders
Adaptation policy:
How far are we?
Resolution &
scale issues
Almost no
examples!
Hopefully
before 2100
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Conclusions
Adaptation policy is a very new, emerging policy field (we
are filling an institutional void!)
Adaptation policy addresses vulnerabilities
Adaptation policy framework: solid principles for BSR
adaptation policy development
Need for further policy analysis: differentiation between
governance levels, actors, kinds of intervention
Develop indicators for policy development
Need for a holistic multi-level multi-stakeholder
governance perspective
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Kiitos! Thank you!
Lasse Peltonen
Centre for Urban and Regional Studies
P.O.Box 9300,
02015 Helsinki University of Technology
Tel. +358-9-4514082
Fax. +358-9-4514071
[email protected]
http://www.tkk.fi/Units/Separate/YTK/index.html
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