In its first climate risk assessment (European Climate Risk Assessment - European Environment Agency (europa.eu)), published a few months ago, the European Environment Agency highlighted the urgent need for more concrete action to adapt to the effects of climate change. In the same vein, a European Climate Adaptation Plan is currently being produced.
It was against this backdrop that Cerac was invited to speak at the very first European Roundtable on Climate Risk Management organized by Climate Action - European Commission (europa.eu) at the Berlaymont building on 11 September 2024. The aim of the roundtable was to help prepare Europe for the increasingly frequent occurrence of potentially devastating climate hazards, by gathering ideas and suggestions from stakeholders from across Europe. This consultation was based on:
- Providing effective and appropriate data and tools,
- Raising awareness and taking more action on social issues,
- Long-term reinforcement of certain key-players, such as public health,
- The need to fill gaps in funding and governance.
Cerac stressed the need to better assess and take into account the security consequences of climate hazards. We have also called for a better translation of existing scientific findings into concrete adaptation measures, as well as more scientific research on certain key topics that are currently not sufficiently addressed (e.g. modelling at national scale the evolution of biodiversity under the effect of climatic and other drivers). Finally, Cerac stressed the need for appropriate mechanisms:
- to enable private investment that is currently economically unattractive in the short term but relevant to nature, raising the question of who should/could bear such a financial risk,
- to support municipalities wishing/having to implement adaptation measures.