Transcript cli__1254843123_NW_PiP_regional_intro_Oct_09_v

Climate Change Adaptation in the
Northwest
Tim Daley
Northwest Climate Change Partnership
What is Climate Change?
 Long term changes
in weather patterns
– 30 year trends
The temperature of the world is changing
Source: IPCC
As is the UK’s…
…and the Northwest of England’s
Variation from 1961-1990 mean (annual average maximum and
minimum temperature) - Ringway weather station data
2.50
Variation from 1961-1990 mean - annual maximum
temperature
2.00
1.50
0.50
1999
1994
1989
1984
1979
1974
1969
1964
1959
1954
0.00
1949
degree C
1.00
-0.50
-1.00
Variation from 1961-1990 mean - annual minimum temperature
-1.50
Source: Met Office data for Ringway weather station
What is the problem with Climate Change?
 Complex
 Impacts directly upon local activities
 Impacts indirectly on the activities of
suppliers, labour supply and external
markets
Impacts in the Northwest
Impacts in the Northwest
Impacts in the Northwest
 Impacts and Opportunities
What are our options?
1. Do nothing
2. Act now
 Mitigation
 Adaptation
 Mitigation – dealing with the causes of climate
change - reducing emissions from our current
activities
 Adaptation – dealing with the effects of climate
change – reducing vulnerability to risks
associated with climate impacts
Why can’t we mitigate now and adapt later?
 3 main
reasons
 Mitigation
takes time
to work…..
Why can’t we mitigate now and adapt later?

Vulnerability
is not solely
related to
climate
impacts…
Why can’t we mitigate now and adapt later?
 Adaptation
now is
cheaper than
later…
How does an organisation adapt?
 Through risk
management
 Assess exposure to
climate related risks
 (or rather the impact of
climate change on
existing sources of risk)
 Decide on vulnerability
to those risks
 Review options and
implement actions
 Review implementation
in light of changing
conditions – climate risks
will continue to present
moving goalposts
What role is there for the new projections?
 How likely….
 Offer the opportunity to
your organisations to
“quantify” the risk to
your operations.
What are we doing in the Northwest?
 “Transforming action” in
the Regional Economic
Strategy (RES)
What are we doing in the Northwest?
 North West action plan for
climate change
 Vision for a low carbon
economy and well adapted
region by 2020
 Action plan developed by a
range of advisory groups
and partners
 Actions on Mitigation
 Actions on Adaptation
 Focused largely on building
adaptive capacity
What are we doing in the Northwest?
 Using UKCIP
projections to assess
the exposure of
different sectors to
climate-enhanced
risks
What are we doing in the Northwest?
 Incorporating
enhanced coastal
and river flooding
into current risk
management
strategies with
partners
 Assessing the
economic cost of
increased flood
risk
What are we doing in the Northwest?
 Assessing the role for Green
infrastructure and forestry in
alleviating direct impacts
What are we doing in the Northwest?
 Assessing the
exposure of our
natural
environment to
direct impacts and
the effect on our
use of ecosystem
services.
What are we doing in the Northwest?
 Engaging with
businesses through
existing delivery
partnerships to
encourage assessment
of climate risk to those
activities
What are we doing in the Northwest?
 Assessing how the
region’s health and
health services will be
impacted upon
The Next Steps….why we are here…
 Embedding the new projections into everyday
management of risk