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Developing Adaptation Policy and Practice in Europe: Multi-level Governance of Climate Change pp 97–147Cite as

Climate Change Adaptation in the United Kingdom: England and South-East England

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Abstract

The UK has been one of the early actors in developing adaptation to climate change, and today has a comprehensive legislative and regulative framework for including climate change effects in planning. This chapter reviews the development of the UK approach, drawing on a literature study and semi-structured interviews conducted with several actors, the majority of whom are from public administration at the national, regional and local levels. The study focuses on England and the South-East England region in particular, one of the areas most at risk of flooding and sea level rise in the UK. In addition to discussing the national and regional levels, the chapter describes how adaptation has been integrated in a number of counties, cities and boroughs in the area. All in all, the study reveals a relatively developed approach to adaptation, made possible in part as a result of both the recognised sensitivity of selected areas to climate change and the centralised nature of the political system. Centralised as well as network capacities of the central government have made it possible for the national level to both include adaptation criteria in the performance assessment framework for local authorities, and for these to be broadly accepted among affected actors.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    In order to target additional areas of adaptation, the Adapting to Climate Change (ACC) programme aims to develop a suite of national indicators on such issues as integrating adaptation into planning, and ‘outcome-focused measurements’ of awareness-raising, capacity-building, and policy and practice changes to be developed during 2010 (DEFRA 2008; DEFRA, personal communication).

  2. 2.

    This follows developments in 2004, when the UK government further published advice to planning authorities on ways for the planning system to respond to climate change. This advice was commissioned by the government in 2000, and resulted in a study including a focus on both mitigation and adaptation (with particular emphasis on adaptation), conducting interviews with members in climate change science and policy in the UK and abroad, and reviews of planning policy: Regional Planning Guidance (RPG) as well as Regional Sustainable Development Frameworks (RSDF) (Wilson 2006).

  3. 3.

    Wilson (2006) noted that the publication of policy advice on climate change adaptation only took place in 2004 as a result of the initial aim to publish guidance for all of the UK, which turned out to be ‘at odds with an increasingly differentiated system’ (p. 13) where planning policy varied between administrations in different parts of the UK and policies on each detailed adaptation were too complex to deal with given the varying administrations.

  4. 4.

    Interviewees noted, however, that increased regulation on materials used for building and to increase drainage could be developed on the state level; a local authority noted that without such legislation, they could only advise developers on what materials to use and how to avoid paving over gardens that may provide drainage (Portsmouth CC, interview).

  5. 5.

    Privatised water companies were created in the late 1980s, and are to a large extent controlled by the state with regard to the quality and provision of water. At their presentation at the 2007 South East England Regional Assembly Climate Change Summit, Southern Water noted that climate change will reduce river flows, increase the frequency of hot dry summers, and influence future resource schemes (Southern Water, 2007). Suggested adaptation strategies included moving away from single source dominant supply areas, looking for solutions that would make the most of opportunities afforded by climate change such as winter water, and looking for low-energy solutions (Southern Water, 2007). Unfortunately, Southern Water was not available for interview during the time of the study due to the revision of their water business plan.

  6. 6.

    Realising that it was not possible to produce a final report on a national assessment of impacts and that more data was needed from diverse groups, the UKCIP also proposed that it should produce a report of available data in addition to the results of adaptation work (subsequently published as the Measuring Progress report, West and Gawith, 2005).

  7. 7.

    In addition, Business Link, which is funded by the government but run by the RDA, audits and advises businesses and has resources to work with business in a way that Climate South East does not (SEEDA, interview).

  8. 8.

    SEERA also held a Climate Change Summit in 2007, including participation from industry and NGOs (IDeA, 2007). Aside from explicit adaptation priorities, SEERA worked to promote sustainable development across the region through a framework of 24 objectives adapted from UK national sustainable development principles and based on indicators developed by the various regional partnership organisations. SEERA has conducted annual assessments of the implementation of the plan across the region and has worked to ensure consistency between local and regional plans; results are compiled in an annual monitoring report.

  9. 9.

    Here, national priorities such as the PPS (e.g., Climate Policy Statement 1, published in December 2007, and PPS25 on risk) have guided the development of the South East Plan (SEERA, interview).

  10. 10.

    Other regional strategies also exist, such as Integrated Regional Strategies or Integrated Regional Frameworks (DEFRA, 2006b).

  11. 11.

    As Winchester Action on Climate Change is mainly focused on mitigation, they for that reason declined a request for an interview in this study.

  12. 12.

    However, interviewees also noted that adaptation is not a party political issue, and that both Tory and Labour local authorities have been proactive.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Political Science/Department of Social and Economic Geography, Umeå University, Umeå, 90187, Sweden

    E. Carina H. Keskitalo

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  1. Dept. Social &, Economic Geography, Umea University, Umea, 901 87, Sweden

    E. Carina H. Keskitalo

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Keskitalo, E.C.H. (2010). Climate Change Adaptation in the United Kingdom: England and South-East England. In: Keskitalo, E. (eds) Developing Adaptation Policy and Practice in Europe: Multi-level Governance of Climate Change. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-9325-7_3

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