Comments on National Climate Change Adaptation Framework Draft

Transcription

1 Mr. Ian Carruthers Chair Adaptation Taskforce of the COAG Climate Change Group Climate Change Adaptation Framework Australian Greenhouse Office Department of the Environment and Heritage PO Box 787 Canberra ACT 2601 Dear Mr. Carruthers, Comments on National Climate Change Adaptation Framework Draft The Planning Institute of Australia (PIA) welcomes the opportunity to provide comments to the Australian Greenhouse Office (AGO) on the Draft National Climate Change Adaptation Framework (NCCAF) prepared by the Council of Australian Governments (COAG). PIA recognizes the need for a high level, integrated adaptation framework and applauds the timely preparation and initiative of COAG in preparing this document. The Planning Institute of Australia represents around 5000 urban planners and associated professionals working in Australia and internationally. Around half of our members work in local government, thirty percent in the private sector and the remainder in state/commonwealth government and academia. Planners are integral stakeholders and decision makers in the management of land use and development, and as such PIA believes that: Planners are charged with the challenging task of creating an enabling environment for change (in terms of mitigation of future impacts overlapping all sectors); Planners will be faced with increasingly difficult land use and development scenarios reflecting population and settlement trends which will need to be managed within the context of climate change issues to reduce vulnerability to communities and individuals and the environment;

2 Planners will be under pressure to manage coastal and rural areas in new ways in the future which may impact on the way that the community has traditionally used such spaces/places. PIA and planners generally will be key agents for awareness raising and capacity building in the community generally and within this peak profession; Planners will need to continue to work with other key sectors and across government to ensure an integrated approach to climate change adaptation is achieved. In this context, one of the key issues facing our profession is the serious skill shortages of planners across all sectors and especially a shortage of experienced and skilled planners. This issue will impact on the professions ability to respond in a timely and effective way to climate change in the areas mentioned above and this should be factored in to any implementation strategy. PIA is addressing the skill shortage through continuing to implement recommendations of its National Inquiry into Planning Education and Employment. Overall, PIA believes that the draft NCCAF is a useful reference document highlighting the potential impacts of climate change on a diverse range of key sectors, supported by a series of high level actions to mitigate these impacts in the future. Specific to PIA, the NCCAF acts as an important tool to anticipate a number of the more generic and overarching issues that will arise for the planning profession in terms of information and knowledge needs and the ability to mainstream climate change adaptation into our daily practice and long term strategic direction/s. In the context of the draft NCCAF and the emerging issues that are anticipated and validated through this document, PIA believes that the planning profession is facing a future which will bring into mainstream planning some very new and challenging land use and development issues and the need for clear and integrated strategic planning outcomes. The attachment to this letter provides more a more detailed response to address the two priority areas for action as identified in the draft NCCAF namely: 1. Building an understanding and adaptive capacity and 2. Reducing vulnerability in key sectors and region This submission has been prepared with advice from PIA s Expert Committee on Climate Change which represents members working across Australia and internationally in diverse planning disciplines. This expert committee will continue to assist PIA shape and inform its agenda on climate change issues facing the planning profession and to ensure planners can meet the challenges posed by climate change. In addition PIA, with support from the AGO is delivering ten seminars nationally to planners in These seminars will provide up to date information to practitioners and provide feedback to the AGO on tools required by planners. 2

3 Once again, thank you for the opportunity to comment and if you require any further information on this submission please contact Liz de Chastel, National Policy Co-ordinator on telephone Regards Di Jay Chief Executive Officer 28 th September

4 DETAILED COMMENTS - DRAFT NATIONAL CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION FRAMWEWORK The following is a more detailed response to the draft framework with references to the relevant sections of the framework paper: Building and Understanding and Adaptive Capacity PIA recognizes the need for more accessible sets of data that are tailored to the requirements of planning professionals that build on, and create new, partnerships with other key industry bodies and decision makers for an integrated approach to climate change mitigation. PIA believes that such information would also assist in awareness raising and education (both within the profession and in the community generally). 1.1 Regional Climate Change Information PIA supports the provision of nationally consistent information for regional impact assessment. PIA encourages the inclusion of key spatial and land use data and trends into this proposed information database/package to ensure this information is accessible (and relevant) to planning decision makers that will enable a risk based land use approach to planning for vulnerable communities/areas. The actions in Section 1.1 should be amended to reflect this point. 1.2 Integrated research for adaptation PIA supports an integrated, multi-disciplinary approach to assessments of vulnerability to climate change. At this stage, PIA recognises that the ability to identify vulnerable communities and prioritise responses to such communities is limited within the planning profession and that more detail and guidance in terms of assessing vulnerability the environmental, social and economic issues that relate to land use and settlement patterns, should be provided by the NCCAF. This is particularly relevant considering section 1.2 b highlights such a vast range of areas/land as characteristic of vulnerable environments and/or communities, ranging from specific inland and coastal environments to presumably all major urban coastal developments and regional communities. More certainty and guidance on how to assess vulnerability and then prioritise responses to such communities/environments in a planning sense is required. As such, PIA supports the adoption of (a potentially modified form of) the Risk Management process based on the Australian Standard (Figure 3) supported by key base line information and data as a good starting point for standardising an approach to assessing vulnerability of different natural and built environments, and support the inclusion of this into the actions within section 1.2 of the NCCAF. 4

5 PIA recognises the need for increasing opportunities to create tangible connections between individual and collective actions and the associated impacts on the environment and communities (in the longer term), with an emphasis on localising / individualising mitigation actions and increasing accountability in the choices individuals make regarding their use of land and space and their movement within urban and regional areas. There is a need for the NCCAF to reflect this (and not separate mitigation as an isolated action beyond the scope of the framework). 1.3 Information and tools In the context of concerns raised in 1.2 above, PIA supports the preparation of cross cutting tools such as integrated assessment methodologies and the establishment of a one stop shop of information for decision makers. These tools will assist the planning profession make informed, mutually responsive and consistent decisions across the country in terms of the management of vulnerable communities and the implementation of mitigation techniques within a planning framework. PIA highlights the need for accessible and relevant information prepared for key industries such as the planning profession to ensure that data is actually used in decision making, and support the inclusion of this within action 1.3a. PIA recommends that base level GIS data incorporating relevant layers of information relating to the relationship between climate change issues, vulnerability and changing land use patterns be prepared and as such should be included as part of the actions in section 1.3 of the NCCAF. Not only would this information be integral for achieving optimal planning outcomes (in a simple yet effective representation of key data) but it would also act as a key educational tool which would make sometimes challenging information more tangible and to individual land owners and communities, demystifying (and mainstream) climate policy for a much broader audience. Having regard to the above, the NCCAF should also include into its actions the need for integrating climate change into professional education and training as part of ongoing professional certification and professional development (not only as part of secondary and tertiary education as identified in action 1.3c) 1.4 International Connections and Partnerships PIA supports the mutual benefits to be gained from the sharing of information and key lessons relating to climate change adaptation from other countries. Of particular relevance (given our strategic location and Federal Government development commitments), PIA believe that the actions should priorotise the inclusion of information sharing with our Pacific Island neighbours including Samoa, Fiji, Kiribati, Tokelau and Tonga who are currently preparing implementation plans and funding submissions in association with the UNDP to mobilise priority coastal management adaptation actions (based on their NCCAF). Reducing Vulnerability in Key Sectors and Regions Sector Based Approach PIA recognises that while a sector based approach represents an accessible and manageable way to address the range of potential impacts facing Australia as a whole, there is a need for the cross cutting issues such as planning to be more prominent within the NCCAF in terms of its role and ability to influence and mitigate impacts and manage change. 5

6 PIA believes that planning is integral in avoiding a silo based sectoral response to the NCCAF that ignores the overlapping and integrating nature of the sectors. In this context, PIA identifies the human element (i.e. where people live, opportunities for employment, proximity to and reliability of services and infrastructure) as the key binding aspect integrating all sectors. The management of this is a core planning function and as such PIA recommends that this be emphasised within the NCCAF (see also comments below re integration of Sections 2.7 and 2.8). Having regard to the above, PIA is concerned about the way that the sectors and cross-cutting themes are structured within the document to de-emphasise communities and the impacts of climate change issues (and responses) on the population (i.e. displacement, settlement patterns, access to opportunities etc). It is considered that the emphasis on trade and economic implications within the draft NCCAF (i.e. Sections 1.4c, 2.2 and 2.6) does not reflect a balanced representation of the triple bottom line impacts of climate change issues and adaptation. PIA strongly encourages the reconsideration of this emphasis within the NCCAF. Settlement/infrastructure and planning PIA is unclear about the reasoning for the separation of settlements and infrastructure as a sector (2.7) and planning as a cross-sectoral system and process. Both of these issues are implicitly related as it is the role of planning to manage and direct settlement and infrastructure patterns and development across the nation. As it stands, the separation of actions into two distinct sections of the NCCAF (2.7 and 2.8) does not reflect the reality of the integrated nature of these activities and assumes that the role of planning is simply as a decision making and regulatory body. However, the actions proposed in section 2.7 are clearly the mandate of planners (the managers of urban, rural and coastal infrastructure and land use), as are the actions in section 2.8. As such, PIA recommends that sections 2.7 and 2.8 be integrated as one individual sector called planning, with the proposed actions listed adopted (and integrated) in line with this change. In addition to the above comments relating to the integration of Sections 2.7 and 2.8, PIA support the consideration of the following additional actions under a new combined planning umbrella sector: Provide specific climate change training for planning professionals (linking into actions in Sections ). Provide greater direction to local government relating to vulnerability assessment and prioritisation of vulnerable communities through the adoption of a standardised national (planning) approach that builds on the Risk Management process based on the Australian Standard (Figure 3). Prepare base line information relating to climate change impacts, demographic trends, infrastructure provision, planning zones and overlays, and land use and settlement patterns at the State level to assist in the identification (and mapping) of vulnerable communities and the preparation of municipal based responses within the risk management framework (i.e. the preparation of a State based climate change atlas, similar to documentation already prepared in some states i.e. Victoria). Incorporate specific reference to opportunities for research into more sustainable public and private transport options into action 2.8d. 6