Climate Change Adaptation Plans

What is a Climate Change Adaptation Plan?

Climate Change Adaptation Plans, also known as Climate Change Risk Assessments and Adaptation Plans, enable organisations and businesses to design resilient and adaptive measures to combat current and future effects of climate change. They are a significant component of risk management and strategic planning and can help to:

• Maintain compliance with Environmental Permits or other obligations and regulations.
• Minimise your impact on the environment during extreme weather events, alongside the event’s impact on your operations.
• Improve business resilience by avoiding unplanned start-ups and shutdowns.

Many industrial installations will experience a certain degree of climate change over their lifetime. As such, the Environment Agency recommends a Climate Change Adaptation Plan to support ongoing management. This requirement is often formalised as part of the application process, or as a condition of operation.

Main Stages of Climate Change Adaptation Plan Production

The main stages of Climate Change Adaptation Plan production are summarised as follows:

1. Review of Existing Processes

This includes understanding what measures your organisation or business already has in place to manage climate related risks and identity who is responsible for action.

2. Identification of Potential Impacts

Consider how vulnerable your site is to climate effects (both current and future). This includes identifying industry-based impacts and site-specific impacts from potential climate change events e.g. sea level rise, extreme temperatures or storms, alongside sensitive receptors, both human and ecological, that require consideration.

3. Undertake Risk Assessment

Understand key climate change events, vulnerable receptors and the likely site impact. It’s important to consider current climate threats, as well as those predicted for a 2◦C rise by 2050 and a 4◦C rise by 2100. Risk assessments should be reviewed periodically to ensure they reflect current scientific knowledge on climate impacts and current operations at your site.

4. Find Control Measures

Employ appropriate methods, including monitoring and contingencies, to control and minimise potential impacts associated with climate change. This may also include identifying ways to transfer the risk, such as taking out insurance, and terminating the risk, such as changing your processes to remove any hazards.

5. Preparing the Climate Change Adaptation Plan

Following Steps 1 to 4, prepare the Climate Change Adaptation Plan by outlining the potential site-based impacts and vulnerability to climate change.

6. Monitor and Review

A Climate Change Adaptation Plan should be reviewed at least once every 4-years or as soon as practicable after an abnormal climate event. This should consider if the objectives are being achieved, whether priority risks are being managed and whether the plan is still effective. By anticipating and planning accordingly, the risk of future impacts or accidents will be reduced. Any changes to the Climate Change Adaptation Plan should be formally recorded.

Our Experience

Redmore Environmental has completed over 50 Climate Change Adaptation Plans for sites throughout the UK. These have included peaking power plants of varying total generation capacities, located in a mixture of habitats and ecosystems, as well as food and drink manufacturing plants. Some Climate Change Adaptation Plans have focused on risks associated with flooding, due to nearby watercourses, whilst others have emphasised risks associated with fire, due to nearby crops or forests. A Climate Change Adaptation Plan may also be required in support of an Environmental Permit Application or Variations. For every site, the unique potential environmental impact of changes associated with climate change need to be considered and appropriate control measures identified to mitigate identified risks.

How Can we Help?

Get in touch with one of our specialist Air Quality Consultants today to find out more about how we can help you produce a Climate Change Adaptation Plans for your permit application, or visit our case studies to review recently completed projects or related news.