CLIVAS project focusing on climate risk assessment begins in Southwest Finland
Even though climate change is a global challenge, the extreme weather events caused by it are experienced locally. Municipalities and local communities must thus adapt both their thinking and their actions to correspond with the demands of the changing climate. The CLIVAS project will support the recognition of climate risks and actions related to them in Southwest Finland.
Finland can be seen as a model country for preparedness where issues related to climate change adaptation have also been considered in national-level planning for a long time. The effects of climate change have been assessed and anticipated at different levels of society and economy but knowledge at the local and regional level is still fragmented. This can also be seen in Southwest Finland where significant efforts for climate change mitigation have been made but where the work on adaptation is still in its early stages.
The goal of the CLIVAS project is to build understanding of the effects of climate change at the regional level by making weather and climate risk assessments and analyses. Together with close stakeholder cooperation, the project will determine the most relevant actions for adaptation in the region and offer knowledge for municipalities and other actors on climate risks and on how to reduce their impacts.
European cooperation supports the risk assessment and adaptation planning
The project will utilize a toolbox and a framework developed in the CLIMAAX project which can be used for making detailed risk assessments of floods, droughts and their multiplicative effects. With the help of broad stakeholder cooperation, the project will recognize the most relevant climate-related risks and develop regional climate risk assessments, making use of local data as well. The project will utilize already existing regional structures for climate change cooperation such as the regional climate cooperation group which acts as an advisory and coordinating body in issues related to regional carbon neutrality targets.
“The work on climate change mitigation in the municipalities of Southwest Finland is already in an advanced stage and a regional climate roadmap has been drafted to support it. There are things that we can do better in issues related to adaptation, though. There is an acute need for adaptation planning and the regional climate roadmap should also be updated to take adaptation-related issues into consideration”, says the chairman of the regional climate cooperation group Pekka Salminen from the Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment in Southwest Finland.
Support for municipalities and other actors
The most relevant actions for adaptation will be selected based on the work conducted on risk assessments. Local municipalities and other actors can then use them in their own work on climate change adaptation. The actions recommended by the project are recommended to be included in the municipal and regional strategies as well. The results of the work will also be incorporated into the regional climate roadmap. The project will increase the knowledge of citizens and professionals on climate risks, support adaptation on a local level and strengthen the work of the municipalities on climate change adaptation.
More information
Otto Lappalainen
Project specialist, Valonia
otto.lappalainen@valonia.fi
+358 40 554 75 13