Municipal Climate Change Adaptation Strategies in Portugal

Transcription

1 Municipal Climate Change Adaptation Strategies in Portugal Filipe Duarte Santos CNADS CE3C - CCIAM Centre for Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation and Modelling University of Lisbon AdaPT under EEA Grants Promoting Adaptation to Climate Change in Portugal COP 21 Paris, 11 December, 2015

2 Evidence for climate change in the Iberian Peninsula

3 Observed Precipitacion in Europe Increase of annual precipitacion in Scandinavia: 20.64mm per decade Decrease of annual precipitacion in the Iberian Península: mm per decade EEA Report, 2012

4 Evolution of the aridity index in the period Semi-arid Dry/Sub-humid Subhumid wet Humid

5 Forest fires areas from Continental Portugal (Landsat) João Silva et al., 2014

6 Strong increase in the meteorological risk of forest fires; Increase in the duration of the annual period of high risk; The repetitive return of fires may prevent the sustainability of the present forests. Forest fire at Serra de Monchique, Algarve, in 2003

7 Observed sea level rise at tide gauge in Cascais (Lisbon)

8 Conclusion There are already strong reasons to adapt to the current climate For civil society it is easier to embark on a climate change adaptation process if there is a perceived change in the current climate. This is the basis of the ClimAdaPT.Local project strategy Local government plays a crucial role because adaptation must take into account local social, economic and physical aspects

9 A2 emission scenario ( ) Current ( ) Climate change in Southern Europe Climate change in Southern Europe: Lower rainfall Higher temperature Increased climatic aridity Impacts on water resources: Lower availability Increased frequency of droughts Nunes et al.: assessing the impacts of climate change on drought Present ( ) and future ( ) climatic aridity in the Mediterranean region

10 67% of the coastal zone has risk of innundation and erosion The main reason now is sediment deficit from rivers In the future SLR will become the most importante driver Source SIAM

11 Évora, 22 de Abril de 2014 Furadouro

12 Project ClimAdaPT.Local Construct adaptation strategies in 26 Municipalities, 1 per Regional Group, including the Autonomous Regions of Azores and Madeira 12 Participating institutions including the 3 Municipalities that already have strategies. CCIAM Research Group, University of Lisbon, coordinates the project Funding Agencies EEA Grants, APA, FPC

13 ClimAdaPT.Local uses na adaptation of the UKCIP UK Climate Impacts Programme methodology Adaptation is not an end point but a cyclical process Climate change scenarios are provided here In the 2nd step the technicians identify the vulnerabilities of their Municipality to the current climate

14 ClimAdaPT.Local In line with the objectives of the EU strategy on adaptation to climate change and the Portuguese Strategy for Adaptation to Climate Change (ENAAC and QEPIC)

15 The methodology used - Raises the awareness of climate change and promotes adaptation and mitigation - Enables the access to information, tools and resources, including future climate scenarios - Enables to assess vulnerability to climate change - Makes the case for adaptation at the local level and for coordination and cooperation with stakeholders and with the central government - Develops a climate-resilient strategy

16 Civil society participation in the ClimAdaPT.Local project - Workshops are taking place in the 26 Municipalities to establish a dialogue with civil society through stakeholders. - The objective is to receive advice before establishing and approving the adaptation measures that will be included in the climate change adaptation strategies - These workshops have a strong participation from business, central, regional and local institutions and NGOs.

17 Training of the municipal technicians

18 Recent Activities Creation of the Network of Municipalities (Nov, Dec 15) Workshop of stakeholders in each municipality (October 15 January 16) Workshop on climate change adaptation with members of the Press - COP21 (12 th 13 th Nov 15) Conference Businesses in the Local Adaptation (23 rd Nov 15) Presence at the 1st Congress of The Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP) on Climate Change (19 th 20 th Nov 15)

19 Main Positive Aspects Found 1 Strong political commitment/will in the Municipalities 2 Opportunity for a stronger collaboration between departments within each Municipality (water, agriculture, forests and biodiversity, land planning, natural disasters, environment, health, transport, among others). Good chance to promote a dialogue 3 Wilingness to interact with scientists 4 Willingness to consider social issues related to climate change and to improve the adaptation capacity

20 Main Obstacles Found 1 - Unclear responsabilities to deal with a strongly transdisciplinary project. Multilevel governance of climate change adaptation 2 Difficulties in making estimates of adaptation costs and benefits 3 - Lack of climate and other physical data 4 Fear that this may be a one shot initiative without proper funding for a follow up and for an effective implementation of the strategy

21 Conclusions - Adaptation at the local level depends essencially on trust. It must be a collaborative and inclusive process - Multi-level governance. Need to improve the interaction between Central Government, Regional Governments, Municipalities, Business, other stakeholders and academia - Strong need to implement climate services - Need to have access to adequate human and financial resources - Need to address disruptive changes in water resources, coastal zones, agriculture and forestry due to climate change

22 Thank you for your attention