Abstract
AbstractThis study outlines the adaptation planning journey undertaken by Derry City and Strabane District Council (DCSDC) in Northern Ireland and reflects how the prevailing policy context and level of organisational adaptive capacity create the conditions for mainstreaming climate adaptation into planning and development. This chapter explores the potential of local government in Northern Ireland to integrate local authority policy drivers such as disaster risk reduction (DRR), emergency planning, risk and assurance, and community resilience. The ability to communicate risks and solutions was identified as an important consideration when undertaking adaptation planning, particularly when discussing the adaptation planning process and securing input or support from colleagues. Moreover, a significant amount of engagement was required with local government agencies to increase understanding of the relevance of climate change and DRR. Embedding DRR and climate change adaptation (CCA) within local authority policy and planning can enable a greater understanding of specific risks to local governments and act as a catalyst for further action.
Highlights
Climate change has significant effects on local authorities, from the management of property and assets and delivery of services, to an increased need for community support alongside spatial development and regeneration
A Climate Change Risk & Opportunities Assessment has been undertaken for two major regeneration projects as part of the City Deal (DCSDC, 2021), with the intention that this will set the standards necessary for all future Council development projects
Derry City and Strabane District Council (DCSDC) recognises that service delivery is at risk from disruptions to energy supply, transport networks, staff access to places of work and impacts on productivity, and have committed to ensuring that operations, services and digital infrastructure are prepared and resilient to the effects of climate change, including waste management, recreation and leisure facilities, and ongoing daily operations across all services
Summary
Climate change has significant effects on local authorities, from the management of property and assets and delivery of services, to an increased need for community support alongside spatial development and regeneration. Climate change adaptation (CCA) planning provides opportunities to integrate local authority policy drivers such as disaster risk reduction (DRR), which in councils takes the form of emergency planning, into community resilience. Mainstreaming climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction and sustainable development into policy and planning involves the incorporation of these cross-cutting considerations into government activities and decision-making (Flood et al, 2020). We demonstrate the mainstreaming process in action as captured by these five key factors It is not currently a statutory requirement for local authorities in Northern Ireland to undertake adaptation planning. Funding necessary to lead the CLIMATE1 project This began the three- year adaptation planning journey in DCSDC which evolved from a small team of enthusiastic proponents to a dedicated task force encompassing all Council service areas
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