- Innovative methodology designed to be exportable to other countries
- Catalonia passes the test, but must continue working to adapt to climate change
The Catalan Office for Climate Change of the Directorate-General for Environmental Policy has just published a pioneering and innovative document, Climate Change Impact Adaptation Measurement Indicators. The publication is timed to coincide with the COP20 talks taking place in Lima, Peru. These indicators allow the extent to which we are adapting to global climate changes to be measured and quantified. The methodology used can be extrapolated and applied to any other country around the world.
The study took 83 indicators as its starting point, identifying and classifying 29 key indicators as the methodology was developed. These are grouped under the following headings: water management, agriculture and livestock farming, forestry, health, the energy sector, industry, services and commerce, tourism, town planning and housing, mobility and transport infrastructures, research, development and innovation.
The subsequent statistical analysis of these 29 indicators, with the assistance of the Catalan Institute for the Evaluation of Public Policies (Ivàlua), produced a global adaptation indicator quantifying Catalonia's capacity to adapt to climate change in the future. This global indicator is based on two factors: use of resources and environmental quality. Effectively, our capacity to adapt to the impact of climate change depends on how we use resources (water and energy, principally) and on the quality of the environment (basically, the air we breathe).
Detailed descriptions so the methodology can be exported to the rest of the world
The document contains a detailed description of all the indicators analysed. It also explains how the single global indicator was calculated. This detail means the methodology can be used by any country which has the necessary data available.
Catalonia passes the test, but must continue working to adapt to climate change
The global indicator allows a country's capacity to adapt to climate change to be monitored over time. The absolute value of the indicator (from 0 to 10) dropped slightly between 2005 and 2011. Catalonia is working on the issue, but must continue to make every effort to improve the extent to which we are adapting to ensure that our land, natural systems and society are progressively less vulnerable to the impact of climate change.
An opportunity for improving the country's industries
In developing this indicator, Catalonia has a tool which provides guidance on where to focus efforts towards developing a green, circular, low-carbon economy which is adaptable to the new conditions brought about by climate change. This is opening up a range of economic and social opportunities which are currently being developed in fields such as energy efficiency, saving water, renewable energies, smart mobility, forestry management and healthcare.
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