Implications For Climate Change Adaptation Research Articles

The missing fire: quantifying human exclusion of wildfire in Pacific Northwest forests, USA

AbstractWestern U.S. wildfire area burned has increased dramatically over the last half‐century. How contemporary extent and severity of wildfires compare to the pre‐settlement patterns to which ecosystems are adapted is debated. We compared large wildfires in Pacific Northwest forests from 1984 to 2015 to modeled historic fire regimes. Despite late twentieth‐century increases in area burned, we show that Pacific Northwest forests have experienced an order of magnitude less fire over 32 yr than expected under historic fire regimes. Within fires that have burned, severity distributions are disconnected from historical references. From 1984 to 2015, 1.6 M ha burned; this is 13.3–18.9 M ha less than expected. Deficits were greatest in dry forest ecosystems adapted to frequent, low‐severity fire, where 7.2–10.3 M ha of low‐severity fire was missing, compared to a 0.2–1.1 M ha deficit of high‐severity fire. When these dry forests do burn, we observed that 36% burned with high‐severity compared to 6–9% historically. We found smaller fire deficits, 0.3–0.6 M ha, within forest ecosystems adapted to infrequent, high‐severity fire. However, we also acknowledge inherent limitations in evaluating contemporary fire regimes in ecosystems which historically burned infrequently and for which fires were highly episodic. The magnitude of contemporary fire deficits and disconnect in burn severity compared to historic fire regimes have important implications for climate change adaptation. Within forests characterized by low‐ and mixed‐severity historic fire regimes, simply increasing wildfire extent while maintaining current trends in burn severity threatens ecosystem resilience and will potentially drive undesirable ecosystem transformations. Restoring natural fire regimes requires management that facilitates much more low‐ and moderate‐severity fire.

Forests Policies and Programmes in India: Implications for Climate Change Adaptation

Climate change is a major global environmental and developmental challenge and climate proofing of vulnerable sectors, programmes, natural systems and communities by integrating adaptation and mitigation options into planning process are increasingly becoming an integral part of development. The basic premises on which this could happen are the national and sectoral policies that govern any programmes and actions implemented on ground. This study reviews existing policies, plans and programmes and their implications for climate change. Based on the analyses, key areas of research, policy initiatives and institutional and capacity development needs have been identified, to facilitate climate change adaptation. The forest policies formulated so far in India have been broadly aimed at conservation, reduction of pressure on forests and provisioning of biomass to the large forest dependent population for their fuel and fodder needs apart from generating revenue through production and sale of timber. However, these have not been formulated with climate change as a consideration and therefore may become less effective as climate change and its impacts become increasingly evident. The study clearly identifies that the current policies and programmes have elements/features and activities that directly or indirectly contribute positively towards adaptation, although the primary implications are towards biodiversity and to some extent ecosystem functioning. It finally highlights the need for incorporating climate change concerns in forest sector development programmes and also to address the issue of climate change.

Water Use Efficiency in Rice Production: Implications for Climate Change Adaptation in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta

Water scarcity and competition in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta becomes a great matter of concern under the contexts of climate change and tributary dam construction in upstream countries. Moreover, water productivity or water use efficiency in rice production was quite low in the region due to free-rider problem. Therefore, the study was aimed at measuring water use efficiency at farm level and investigating the factors affecting water use efficiency. The study applied stochastic frontier analysis to estimate water use efficiency for 159 rice farmers in the upstream of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta. The study shows that the average water use efficiency was 18.81%, indicating that rice farmers did consume water very inefficiently. On the average, the rice farmers could reduce their water consumption about 81.19%, keeping their output level and other inputs constant. To improve water use efficiency, the study found that land accumulation or large-scaled production is essential.

Historically evolved practices of the Himalayan transhumant pastoralists and their implications for climate change adaptation

The people living in the agrarian societies develop different strategies in response to climatic variability and environmental uncertainties. Transhumant pastoralists in the Himalayas are among those who follow nature's rhythm of seasonality. The traditional practices built in group's experience might be useful to adapt with climate variability and change. Therefore, this study aims to: 1) study perceptions of transhumant herders towards changes in key climatic variables and validate them with observed data; 2) explore traditional practices of transhumant herders and their significances for climate change adaptation in Khaptad National Park, far-Western Nepal. Data were collected by means of semi-structured interview and focus groups discussions. The results showed that the perceptions of transhumant herders match with observed climatic trends in many instances and herders' traditional strategies have potential in reducing risk from climate change. The findings indicate that the historically evolved practices might be useful for climate change adaptation.

Historically evolved practices of the Himalayan transhumant pastoralists and their implications for climate change adaptation

The people living in the agrarian societies develop different strategies in response to climatic variability and environmental uncertainties. Transhumant pastoralists in the Himalayas are among those who follow nature's rhythm of seasonality. The traditional practices built in group's experience might be useful to adapt with climate variability and change. Therefore, this study aims to: 1) study perceptions of transhumant herders towards changes in key climatic variables and validate them with observed data; 2) explore traditional practices of transhumant herders and their significances for climate change adaptation in Khaptad National Park, far-Western Nepal. Data were collected by means of semi-structured interview and focus groups discussions. The results showed that the perceptions of transhumant herders match with observed climatic trends in many instances and herders' traditional strategies have potential in reducing risk from climate change. The findings indicate that the historically evolved practices might be useful for climate change adaptation.

Producer Responses to Surface Water Availability and Implications for Climate Change Adaptation

Climate change is predicted to bring changes in weather and water availability. The effect on agriculture depends on the ability of producers to modify their practices in response to changing distributions. We develop a two-stage theoretical model of planting and irrigation decisions and use a unique dataset to empirically estimate how producers respond to changes in expected water availability and deviations from expectations. As water supplies decrease, producers respond by planting fewer acres and concentrating the application of water. Highlighting the importance of adaptation in this context, failure to account for this behavioral response overstates climate change impacts by 17%. <i>(JEL Q15, Q25)</i>

Adapting to Climate Change: Perceptions of Maple Producers in New York and Vermont

Maple production is an important part of local food systems in the Northeastern U.S. and Canada, where producers rely on maple as a source of income and as the basis for longstanding family and community traditions. Like many other sectors of the food system, maple production is vulnerable to climate change because of its potential impacts on forest type, tree health and vigor, and timing of sap flow. Since maple producers depend on the health of sugar maples for their livelihood and cultural traditions, adapting to changes in maple production will likely be necessary in the future and will require planning. The goal of this study is to assess the perceptions of maple producers and engage them in the development of strategies for adapting to the potential impacts of climate change. The mixed methods research approach for this study included interviews and a survey of maple producers in the Northern Forest region of New York and Vermont. Results indicate that more than half of the maple producers who responded to the survey expressed concerns about climate change, and more than two-thirds had already made or were planning to make modifica­tions to their businesses. Two factors that were identified as most important to respondents when assessing adaptability to climate change are resili­ency of the maple producers’ sugar bush and the producers’ ability to adopt new technologies. These findings are not just relevant for maple production; they have important implications for climate change adaptation of food systems.

Landscape narratives in practice: implications for climate change adaptation

Research on the societal dynamics of climate change adaptation has advanced during recent years from merely focusing on technical and economic factors to taking into consideration people's individual perspectives and personal values. Within this context a growing literature on the relationship between people's place attachment and climate change adaptation has emerged. This literature seeks to explain how individuals’ relationships with the places in which they live influence current and potential future responses to climate change at the local scale. Nevertheless, critical limitations are evident in the conceptualisation of place and people–place relationships within this literature. In particular, differences between individual place constructions and their possible implications for landscape management are given insufficient attention. To address these shortcomings, we mobilise research on the societal construction of landscapes to uncover how actors in landscape management perceive ‘their’ places and changes to them. Drawing on qualitative interviews with key actors in landscape management in Cornwall (UK), we present four contrasting narratives about local landscapes and climate change and highlight their potential implications for climate change adaptation.

The future is behind us: traditional ecological knowledge and resilience over time on Hawai‘i Island

Local and traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) systems are thought to be particularly valuable for fostering adaptation and resilience to environmental and climate change. This paper investigates the role of TEK in adaptation to social–ecological change at the community level. It is unique because it takes a longitudinal perspective and draws on historical and contemporary data. We focus on a case study from Hawai‘i where TEK, cultural identity, and their relationships to environmental stewardship are locally seen as the basis for social resilience. We describe how coping strategies and indicators of social resilience have changed over time; the role of TEK in resilience; and the implications for climate change adaptation. Our results show the relative contributions of some strategies to cope with social–ecological change have decreased (e.g., forecasting, storage, and mobility), while others have maintained but adapted (e.g., livelihood diversification, knowledge transmission and storage, communal pooling, and cultural identity), underscoring the importance of considering multiple strategies together to promote community resilience. The article argues that understanding how people responded in the past can suggest relevant and culturally appropriate ways—through specific language, values, reference points, and indicators expressed in narratives, proverbs, and songs—of situating climate change and framing adaptation planning. This research also shows that TEK is vital for adaptation to environmental change broadly and climate change in particular, for subsistence-based, indigenous, rural communities, as well as place-based communities living in mixed economies. Thus, it is relevant for the larger Pacific Islands region and other areas that represent a continuum from rural-to-urban and traditional-to-global economies and lifeways.

Case study on the use of dynamically downscaled climate model data for assessing water security in the Lower Hunter region of the eastern seaboard of Australia

A key aim of the Eastern Seaboard Climate Change Initiative (ESCCI) is under-standing the effect of climate change on the eastern seaboard of Australia, and the implications for climate change adaptation in this area. The New South Wales (NSW) / Australian Capital Territory (ACT) Regional Climate Modelling project (NARCliM) has produced three dynamically downscaled reanalysis climate datasets along with 12 downscaled general circulation model (GCM) projections of current (1990–2009) and future climate. It is expected that the NARCliM dataset will be used for many climate change impact studies including water security assessment. Therefore, in this study we perform a case study investigation into the usefulness and limitations of using NARCliM data for water security assessment, using the Lower Hunter urban water supply system managed by Hunter Water Corporation. We compare streamflow and reservoir levels simulated using NARCliM rainfall and a gridded historical rainfall dataset (AWAP) and focus our analysis on the differences in the simulated streamflow and reservoir levels. We show that when raw (i.e. not bias-corrected) NARCliM rainfall and potential evapotranspiration (PET) data is used to simulate streamflow and reservoir storage levels, some of the NARCliM datasets produce unrealistic results when compared with the simulations using AWAP; for example, some NARCliM datasets simulate reservoirs at or near empty while the AWAP reservoir simulations rarely drop below 60%. The bias-corrected NARCliM rainfall (corrected to AWAP) produces estimates of streamflow and reservoir levels that have a closer, but still inconsistent, match with the streamflow and reservoir levels simulated using AWAP directly. The inconsistency between the simulations using bias-corrected rainfall and historical AWAP rainfall is potentially because while bias-correction reduces systematic deviations it does not fix temporal rainfall sequencing issues. Additionally, the NARCliM PET is not bias-corrected and using bias-corrected rainfall with uncorrected PET in hydrological models results in physical inconsistencies in the rainfall-PET relationship and simulated streamflow. We demonstrate that rainfall plays a large role in the streamflow simulations, while PET seems to play a large role in the reasonableness of the simulated reservoir dynamics by determining the evaporation losses from the reservoirs. The downscaled GCM datasets that simulate the greatest average PET for 1990–2009 show reservoirs often (unrealistically) near empty. This study highlights the need to assess the validity of all climate data for the applications required, with a focus on long-term statistics for reservoir modelling and ensuring realism and coherence across all projected variables.

Variation in responsiveness of woody plant leaf out phenology to anomalous spring onset

AbstractTiming of leaf out in woody plants is being affected by global climate change, with cascading effects on associated organisms and ecosystem processes. However, the timing and responsiveness of this important phenological event are not well understood, especially in relation to the geographic origin of species and populations. This study assessed the effect of anomalous spring warming on leaf out timing for woody plant species and individuals from a range of taxa and geographic origins. Timing of leaf out was assessed across 4 years (2011–2014) for 478 plants, representing 96 species and 21 genera, planted together in a common environment at The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, Illinois, USA. An anomalously warm spring in 2012 strongly affected leaf out timing, advancing mean leaf out date for every species by an average of 31 days across all individuals. Responsiveness was related to species traits, as species classified as early‐successional, with diffuse‐porous wood anatomy, or with a weak chilling requirement were much more responsive. There was strong variation among individuals within a species in leaf out timing and responsiveness. These patterns were somewhat related to geographical origin of the individual, but were not consistent among species or genera. High responsiveness of leaf out to anomalous spring warming, which is forecasted to be more common with global climate change, could have important implications for climate change adaptation, assisted migration, and ecological interactions. Chilling requirements may have limited responsiveness for some species, which could affect competitive dynamics within plant communities. Through such interactions and direct effects on woody plant species, variation in spring leaf out phenology will likely affect biodiversity and functioning in many ecosystems.

Case study on the use of dynamically downscaled climate model data for assessing water security in the Lower Hunter region of the eastern seaboard of Australia

A key aim of the Eastern Seaboard Climate Change Initiative (ESCCI) is under-standing the effect of climate change on the eastern seaboard of Australia, and the implications for climate change adaptation in this area. The New South Wales (NSW) / Australian Capital Territory (ACT) Regional Climate Modelling project (NARCliM) has produced three dynamically downscaled reanalysis climate datasets along with 12 downscaled general circulation model (GCM) projections of current (1990–2009) and future climate. It is expected that the NARCliM dataset will be used for many climate change impact studies including water security assessment. Therefore, in this study we perform a case study investigation into the usefulness and limitations of using NARCliM data for water security assessment, using the Lower Hunter urban water supply system managed by Hunter Water Corporation. We compare streamflow and reservoir levels simulated using NARCliM rainfall and a gridded historical rainfall dataset (AWAP) and focus our analysis on the differences in the simulated streamflow and reservoir levels. We show that when raw (i.e. not bias-corrected) NARCliM rainfall and potential evapotranspiration (PET) data is used to simulate streamflow and reservoir storage levels, some of the NARCliM datasets produce unrealistic results when compared with the simulations using AWAP; for example, some NARCliM datasets simulate reservoirs at or near empty while the AWAP reservoir simulations rarely drop below 60%. The bias-corrected NARCliM rainfall (corrected to AWAP) produces estimates of streamflow and reservoir levels that have a closer, but still inconsistent, match with the streamflow and reservoir levels simulated using AWAP directly. The inconsistency between the simulations using bias-corrected rainfall and historical AWAP rainfall is potentially because while bias-correction reduces systematic deviations it does not fix temporal rainfall sequencing issues. Additionally, the NARCliM PET is not bias-corrected and using bias-corrected rainfall with uncorrected PET in hydrological models results in physical inconsistencies in the rainfall-PET relationship and simulated streamflow. We demonstrate that rainfall plays a large role in the streamflow simulations, while PET seems to play a large role in the reasonableness of the simulated reservoir dynamics by determining the evaporation losses from the reservoirs. The downscaled GCM datasets that simulate the greatest average PET for 1990–2009 show reservoirs often (unrealistically) near empty. This study highlights the need to assess the validity of all climate data for the applications required, with a focus on long-term statistics for reservoir modelling and ensuring realism and coherence across all projected variables.

Mangrove Forest Characterization in Southeast C&amp;#244;te d’Ivoire

Mangrove ecosystems are faced with far more existential threats of erosion than their terrestrial counterparts. Consequences of their degradation vary from decline in edible aquatic stocks, coastal erosion and aquatic weeds invasion. Mangrove forest dynamics was assessed from multi-temporal analyses of remotely sensed satellite images (mosaics of 1989/90 and 2014/15) within 233,900 hectares. Ground-truthing was accompanied by field measurements in selected forest stands to characterize structure, estimate biomass and carbon pools. With conservation as overriding goal, a socio-economic survey was conducted to underpin the factors influencing mangrove forests over-exploitation and qualitatively assess the sensitivity of the locals to resources decline. The region recorded fifty percent loss of mangrove area during the 25-year period. Low leaf area index (1.02 - 2.52 m2·m-2) confirms canopy openness. Above-ground root biomass (kg per root) ranged between 110.67 and 382.64. The roots demonstrate capacity to fix up to 176 Mg C ha-1 with average carbon content of 46 percent. Highest carbon pools were in the Eloka-To forest stands, in near natural conditions. Despite harsh environmental conditions, potential for natural regeneration was evidenced by seedlings density (individuals per m2) up to 76. Pilot survey revealed high dependence on mangrove resources for direct income (70 percent) and daily energy needs (60 percent). Despite the heightened awareness of the impending dangers posed by mangrove deforestation and willingness to conserve, riverine communities are incapacitated by lack of viable economic alternatives. External interventions are therefore imperative to achieve conservation goals with long-term implications for climate change adaptation and mitigation.

Re-thinking climate change adaptation and capacities at the household scale

The reality of anthropogenic climate change has rendered adaptive responses at all scales an imperative. Households are an increasing focus of attention, but more in the developing world than the developed world, because of the presumed lesser vulnerabilities and stronger adaptive capacities of the latter. Critiques of such presumptions, and the quantitative, macro-scale focus of much adaptation research are emergent. How relatively affluent households, as complex social assemblages, may adapt to climate change impacts encountered in their day-to-day functioning remains unclear. There is, however, a sizeable body of research on household environmental sustainability in the developed world. That research has significant implications for climate change adaptation. This paper brings household environmental sustainability research into productive conversation with the climate change adaptation literature. The former shows that sustainability issues are refracted through social relations within households, and the demands of everyday life. This has three implications for how adaptation needs to be re-framed. First, climate change will not be experienced only via climatic stimuli and extreme weather events. It will be entwined in the complexity of everyday life. Second, knowledge of climate change is not a prerequisite for household adaptive capacity. Third, household-scale analyses show that assumed capacities and vulnerabilities may end up being quite different to those imagined or measured at a macro-scale. These insights invite consideration of how householders’ adaptive capacities can be better supported.

Constraints to and conservation implications for climate change adaptation in plants

Contemporary climate change is having widespread impacts on plant populations. Understanding how plants respond to this change is essential to our efforts to conserve them. The key climate responses of plant populations can be categorised into one of three types: migration, in situ adaptation, or extirpation. If populations are to avoid extirpation then migration and/or in situ adaptation is essential. In this review we first articulate the current and future constraints of plant populations, but trees in particular, to the different adaptation strategies (e.g. space availability, rate of change, habitat fragmentation, niche availability). Secondly, we assess the use of the most appropriate methods (e.g. natural environmental gradients, genome and transcriptome scans) for assessing and understanding adaptive responses and the capacity to adapt to future challenges. Thirdly, we discuss the best conservation approaches (e.g. assisted migration, biodiversity corridors, ex situ strategies) to help overcome adaptive constraints in plants. Our synthesis of plant, and particularly tree, responses and constraints to climate change adaptation, combined with the identification of conservation strategies designed to overcome constraints, will help deliver effective management actions to assist adaptation in the face of current and future climate change.

Use patterns of natural resources supporting livelihoods of smallholder communities and implications for climate change adaptation in Zimbabwe

Declining crop and livestock production due to a degrading land resource base and changing climate among other biophysical and socio-economic constraints, is increasingly forcing rural households in Zimbabwe and other parts of Southern Africa to rely on common natural resource pools (CNRPs) to supplement their household food and income. Between 2011 and 2013, we combined farmer participatory research approaches, remote sensing and geographic information systems (GIS) to (1) understand the contribution of CNRPs to household food and income in Dendenyore and Ushe smallholder communities in Hwedza District, eastern Zimbabwe and (2) assess changes of the CNRPs in both space and time, and their implications on climate change adaptation. Across study sites, wetlands and woodlands were ranked as the most important CNRPs. Extraction and use patterns of products from the different pools differed among households of different resource endowment. Resource-constrained households (RG3) sold an average of 183 kg household−1 year−1 of wild loquats fruits (Uapaca kirkiana), realising about US$48, while resource-endowed farmers (RG1) had no need to sale any. The RG3 households also realised approximately US$70 household−1 year−1 from sale of crafts made from water reeds (Phragmites mauritianus). Empirical data closely supported communities’ perceptions that CNRPs had declined significantly in recent years compared with two to three decades ago. More than 60 % of the respondents perceived that the availability of natural resources drawn from wetlands and woodlands, often used for food, energy and crafts, has decreased markedly since the 1980s. Classification of land cover in a GIS environment indicated that CNRPs declined between 1972 and 2011, supporting farmers’ perceptions. Overall, woodlands declined by 37 % in both communities, while the total area under wetlands decreased by 29 % in Ushe, a drier area and 49 % in Dendenyore, a relatively humid area. The over-reliance in CNRPs by rural communities could be attributed to continued decline in crop yields linked to increased within-season rainfall variability, and the absence of alternative food and income sources. This suggests limited options for rural communities to adapt to the changing food production systems in the wake of climate change and variability and other challenges such as declining soil fertility. There is therefore a need to design adaptive farm management options that enhance both crop and livestock production in a changing climate as well as identifying other livelihood alternatives outside agriculture to reduce pressure on CNRPs. In addition, promotion of alternative sources of energy such as solar power and biogas among rural communities could reduce the cutting of trees for firewood from woodlands.

Gene pleiotropy constrains gene expression changes in fish adapted to different thermal conditions.

Understanding the factors that shape the evolution of gene expression is a central goal in biology, but the molecular mechanisms behind this remain controversial. A related major goal is ascertaining how such factors may affect the adaptive potential of a species or population. Here we demonstrate that temperature-driven gene expression changes in fish adapted to differing thermal environments are constrained by the level of gene pleiotropy estimated by either the number of protein interactions or gene biological processes. Genes with low pleiotropy levels were the main drivers of both plastic and evolutionary global expression profile changes, while highly pleiotropic genes had limited expression response to temperature treatment. Our study provides critical insights into the molecular mechanisms by which natural populations can adapt to changing environments. In addition to having important implications for climate change adaptation, these results suggest that gene pleiotropy should be considered more carefully when interpreting expression profiling data.

Survival and growth patterns of white spruce (Picea glauca [Moench] Voss) rangewide provenances and their implications for climate change adaptation.

Intraspecific assisted migration (ISAM) through seed transfer during artificial forest regeneration has been suggested as an adaptation strategy to enhance forest resilience and productivity under future climate. In this study, we assessed the risks and benefits of ISAM in white spruce based on long-term and multilocation, rangewide provenance test data. Our results indicate that the adaptive capacity and growth potential of white spruce varied considerably among 245 range-wide provenances sampled across North America; however, the results revealed that local populations could be outperformed by nonlocal ones. Provenances originating from south-central Ontario and southwestern Québec, Canada, close to the southern edge of the species' natural distribution, demonstrated superior growth in more northerly environments compared with local populations and performed much better than populations from western Canada and Alaska, United States. During the 19–28 years between planting and measurement, the southern provenances have not been more susceptible to freezing damage compared with local populations, indicating they have the potential to be used now for the reforestation of more northerly planting sites; based on changing temperature, these seed sources potentially could maintain or increase white spruce productivity at or above historical levels at northern sites. A universal response function (URF), which uses climatic variables to predict provenance performance across field trials, indicated a relatively weak relationship between provenance performance and the climate at provenance origin. Consequently, the URF from this study did not provide information useful to ISAM. The ecological and economic importance of conserving white spruce genetic resources in south-central Ontario and southwestern Québec for use in ISAM is discussed.

“Climate Finance Issues”: Implications for Climate Change Adaptation for Food Security in Southern Africa

Global development has been asphyxiated by climate change as evidenced by significant repercussions on the world economy.While agriculture is the backbone of most developing economies in the global south, this sector is extremely vulnerable to climate change. Grim statistics point to a bleak future if the risk posed by climate change is not tackled.The impact of climate change has generally seen precipitation increasing in the Global North while the same has decreased in the Global South resulting in both wetter and drier scenarios. This scenario has meant that global food security is under threat.It is against this background that climate change adaptation becomes significant in averting the climate change induced food crisis. However, the UNFCCC “funding streams” for climate change adaptation strategies have been criticised for being financially and technically inadequate for meeting the adaptation needs of poor countries that are more vulnerable to climate effects. The disbursal of climate change is inefficient and more costly. African countries have also been clamouring for direct access to climate finance. Therefore, the ravaging impact of climate change on global development lingers. While there are debates on climate finance for effective adaptation, the resolution of issues involved is key if the battle against climate change is to be won. It is important that adaptation is mainstreamed in government policies, mainly, in the developing countries for effective financing of climate change adaptation to be realised while the poor and most vulnerable in developing countries should be given priority. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2013.v4n6p47

Planning for climate change across borders: insights from the Gold Coast (QLD) – Tweed (NSW) region

Climate change impacts challenge artificially imposed administrative boundaries and expose the need for improved collaboration across borders. However, jurisdictional boundaries represent one of the major obstacles to an integrated response to climate change impacts. Overcoming this barrier is particularly challenging in cases requiring collaboration between institutions operating under different jurisdictions. This paper focuses on the challenges to cross-border institutional arrangements and the subsequent implications for climate change adaptation in the planning sector. Drawing on empirical insights, the paper identifies the key challenges for cross-border arrangements at both local and state levels. It then uses the example provided by the Tweed River Entrance Sand Bypassing Project operative in the Gold Coast (Queensland) and Tweed (New South Wales) border region to discuss the complexity of planning for climate change adaptation across borders.