Archived decisions

Hampshire County Council

Cabinet

16 November 2007

Climate Change Commission of Inquiry

Report of the Director of Environment

Item 3

Contact: Stuart Jarvis, ext 6124 email: [email protected]

1. Summary

1.1 This report outlines the work of the Commission of Inquiry into Climate Change, and highlights the conclusions reached. It draws together those conclusions into a number of overarching topic areas, and outlines proposed actions for the County Council. Recommendations are also made on the nomination of a Cabinet Champion on Climate Change and the future of the Commission.

1.2 Hampshire County Council has been engaged in addressing climate change since the late 1990s. It was amongst the first local authorities to commit to reducing climate change (eg signing the Nottingham Declaration and the Aalborg Commitments) and it was a pilot in Councils for Climate Protection and the Carbon Management Programme and a founder member of the South East Climate Change Partnership. The County Council also leads the European Spatial Planning Adapting to Climate Events (ESPACE) European project and has been part of the Advisory Group for the EU's Green Paper on adaptation to climate change.

1.3 Climate change represents a direct threat to both long term prosperity and aspects of the environment of Hampshire and is therefore a key risk in the effective delivery of the Vision: "Within a decade Hampshire will prosper without risking our environment". The conclusions of the Commission would, if carried out, ensure that the County Council remains in a strong position to fulfil its corporate aims and Vision, and help prepare Hampshire for Climate Change.

2. Recommendations

2.1 That the Cabinet recommends that the County Council should:

(i) note the Report and Conclusions of the Commission of Inquiry and record its thanks to the Commissioners for their work to date on this important matter;

(ii) adopt the following policy:

The County Council, through its own operations and in partnership with others, will seek to ensure a resilient, sustainable Hampshire by placing climate change considerations at the heart of its decision making processes, its policy development, and its operational activities;

(iii) approve the actions set out in section 4 (paragraphs 4.3 to 4.6 inclusive) of the report, as the basis of an Action Plan for the County Council in 2008/09, subject to resource availability and agreement of Partners where required; and

(iv) ask the Commission of Inquiry to reconvene on a regular but infrequent basis in the future to monitor progress, review the changing state of knowledge and advise the County Council further on relevant considerations.

2.2 That the Cabinet also considers nominating a Cabinet Member to champion Climate Change matters across the County Council's activities and operations.

3. Background

3.1 Hampshire County Council has been engaged with climate change issues since the late 1990s. The County Council made early commitments to reducing climate change, eg signing the Nottingham Declaration and the Aalborg Commitments and was a pilot in Councils for Climate Protection and the Carbon Management Programme. Similarly, the Council was a founder member of the South East Climate Change Partnership, leads the ESPACE European project and has been part of the Advisory Group on the EU's Green Paper on adaptation to climate change.

3.2 The County Council's commitment to greater sustainability has been expressed through its being a founder signatory to the Aalborg Commitments in 2004. This culminated in the adoption of the Vision ("Within a decade Hampshire will prosper without risking our environment"), at Council in November 2006. Recognising that climate change is probably the biggest threat to both the long term prosperity and to aspects of the environment of Hampshire, and therefore to achieving the Vision, a Commission was also established to advise on the likely impacts of climate change and how the County Council should address them.

3.3 Four themed hearings were held between May and September 2007, where evidence was presented by external experts, and key findings were agreed by commissioners. The Commission also received evidence from a number of experts, organisations and members of the public.

3.4 A final plenary hearing was held in October 2007, and commissioners reviewed all of the key points of evidence. They reached conclusions for Hampshire, and highlighted the responsibilities that Hampshire County Council has in respect to those conclusions.

4. Findings of Commission

4.1 The Commission reached a number of conclusions for Hampshire and the County Council. Of these 20 were prioritised for action by the Commission, and are contained in tabular form in the attached appendix.

4.2 Of these conclusions most can be grouped into a number of headings for the County Council. The remainder of this section highlights those groupings and gives examples of practical response that is proposed.

4.3 Develop Knowledge: in order to better understand the impacts of climate change and the response required.

(i) Work with the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), the Environment Agency and local partners to develop a research project on the consequences of sea level rise on the coast: to include issues such as economy, recreation, ports, open space, biodiversity, underground services and pollution. Scope of work to be agreed and initial stages commenced by the end of 2008/09.

(ii) Work with partners to research long term requirements for coastal defence and the potential options for dealing with an increasingly dynamic coastline as a result of climate change. Scope of work to be agreed during 2008, with a view to commencing work in early 2009.

(iii) Work with Defra, Natural England and local partners to develop a research project on the impacts of climate change on rural Hampshire: to lead towards a new approach to land management in Hampshire, securing long term resilience to climate change impacts. Work to be scoped during 2008, with a view to commencing work during 2009.

4.4 Build Partnerships: to influence policy and action beyond the County Council.

(i) Work with partners to embed Climate Change in the Sustainable Community Strategy and to influence the development of Local Area Agreements and other joint delivery mechanisms.

(ii) Work with partners to develop sustainable communities that are designed and built to be resilient under climate change. Scope of work to be agreed by mid-2008, with an indicative timescale for overall delivery of outcomes.

(iii) Work with all infrastructure providers to deliver sustainable infrastructure that will improve its ability to withstand the impacts of climate change and, where appropriate, help to reduce the causes of climate change. Group to be formed and work programme to be agreed during 2008, with longer term work programme and timescales established.

(iv) Request the Hampshire Water Partnership to address issues surrounding water resource (quality and quantity) issues, and the assumptions made concerning the impacts of climate change of those resources . Scope of work to be agreed in 2008.

(v) Commission Sustainable Business Partnership and the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) to develop a set of key messages about the economics of adapting to climate change and devise an effective methodology for disseminating them to Hampshire businesses. Messages and methodology to be agreed during 2008, and rolled out from 2009 onwards.

4.5 Education and Communication: to engage with the Hampshire community (including working with local communities, partners, children within schools and the staff of Hampshire County Council).

(i) Build upon the 2004 survey on public attitudes to climate change in Hampshire by commissioning a new survey during 2008. Results to be used to develop recommendations for any further action needed to engage with the community of Hampshire.

(ii) Produce a climate change engagement strategy to target those groups highlighted above and engage with them on the issue of climate change. Strategy to be produced by the end of 2008/09 with recommendations for next steps to be considered by the County Council.

(iii) Work with partners (eg Solent Forum) and stakeholders to scope the development of an engagement and delivery strategy to raise awareness of and promote adaptation to sea level rise with coastal communities. Work to be scoped during 2008, and delivery programme established with appropriate timescales.

4.6 Immediate Actions: to address issues within Hampshire County Council operations and procedures.

(i) Policy and Resources Select Committee to review the County Council's decision making processes during 2008 to make recommendations for incorporating climate change issues.

(ii) Corporate Risk Manager to review the County Council's insurance position in light of climate change, during 2008. Potential weaknesses to be identified and remedial action to be identified.

(iii) Emergency Planning Officer to review disaster recovery plans to ensure that they are fit for purpose in light of the impacts of climate change. Review to be undertaken during 2008 and recommendations made for improvement where required.

5. Proposed Response of the County Council to the Commission Conclusions

5.1 Climate change is becoming a serious challenge to the achievement of economic prosperity as well as a significant risk to the Hampshire environment, and the effects will continue to increase over time.

5.2 Therefore the County Council should consider adopting an over-arching policy on Climate Change to provide a framework for embedding climate change considerations into policy development, operating procedures and future actions:

The County Council, through its own operations and in partnership with others, will seek to ensure a resilient sustainable Hampshire by placing climate change considerations at the heart of its decision making processes, its policy development, and its operational activities.

5.3 That the Commission conclusions should be noted and the action points contained within this report should form the basis of an Action Plan to be carried out, within the constraints of available resources and cooperation of partners, as appropriate and necessary to the delivery of each action. In this context it will be important to keep the Action Plan under review to ensure that it reflects evolving knowledge and progress with actions, and as such will be a dynamic document rather than fixed plan at any given date.

5.4 That the members of the Commission should be asked to reconvene in the future to monitor progress, review the changing state of knowledge and advise the County Council.

5.5 During the process of the Commission, Members have raised a number of points relating to the County Council's approach to climate change issues. Cabinet may wish to consider whether it should nominate a Cabinet champion to promote the significance of climate change throughout the County Council.

6. Resources

6.1 There are some resources within the Environment Department, both in terms of staff capacity and operational budget, which can be prioritised to work on Climate Change issues, but some of this capacity will be lost with the ending of the ESPACE project in August 2008. In addition the resourcing issue is critically dependent on the willingness of key partners to support and provide resources for the proposed actions. This picture will only become clearer once detailed negotiations have taken place with partners and the Action Plan is developed further on that basis. However, the County Council alone cannot resource all of the Actions proposed within current budget and staffing provision, and therefore prioritisation will also be an important dimension to the development of the Action Plan.

7. Impact Assessments

7.1 Assessment of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act has been considered in the development of these proposals. No adverse impact has been identified in terms of race, creed or gender.

8. Conclusion

8.1 Climate change is considered to be a major challenge to the future prosperity and quality of life in Hampshire, and as part of the County Council's commitment to a safe and secure Hampshire, the Council must look ahead and plan for its impacts. Some changes to the climate are now inevitable and their likely impacts must be considered and it must be ensured that all has been done to adapt and manage these impacts. The County Council is clear about the need for everyone to act decisively now, to help ensure that Hampshire is well-placed to adapt to the inevitable climate change that will happen over the next 25-50 years. The County Council cannot address these issues alone, therefore public awareness and community engagement will be vital to a successful outcome. The County Council has accepted the challenge of community leadership, and the results of the Commission will help it to develop priorities and focus on key areas.


LINK(S) TO CORPORATE STRATEGY
	Yes	No
Hampshire safer and more secure for all	_

Maximising well-being	_

Enhancing our quality of place	_


Section 100 D - Local Government Act 1972 - background papers

The following documents disclose facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and has been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of this report.

NB the list excludes:

1.	Published works.

2.	Documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act.

TITLE	LOCATION
None.

9414Rpt/SJ

APPENDIX

Number	Original Commission Reference Numbers		Key Point	Commission Conclusion for Hampshire	Commission Conclusion for Hampshire County Council
I	1	Strategic Policy	Government policy on building on Brownfield before Greenfield could reduce the ability to have future green spaces in towns/cities? Work needs to be looked at the case for this. Blue, green, brown issues, urban form and development.	A longer term holistic vision, from policy through design to construction, is required for all future built development in Hampshire. The use of urban green space (including water and other features), brownfield and greenfield sites, and structural layout, is key to enable meaningful adaptation to climate change. Current policy thinking and implementation may limit these future options.	The County Council to work with partners to develop an understanding of the requirements for Hampshire and, once these are known, agree an implementation programme.
II	7		Current building regulations will not produce building stock which will be capable of dealing with the impacts of climate change.	Existing building regulations and design criteria will not lead to building stock being capable of dealing with climate change or being located away from vulnerable areas (eg floodplains).	The County Council to work with partners in a leading role eg PUSH, ABI to promote resilient design and sustainable construction.
III	13		A coherent approach to managing existing infrastructure is needed.	A coherent approach to managing existing infrastructure is needed, in light of the impacts of climate change.	The County Council to initiate and drive forward the coherent approach with other infrastructure providers.
IV	42		Climate change will put pressure on our water resources. What effect will it have on our water demand?	A long term approach is required to water resource (quality and quantity) issues. Increases in population and changes to water use behaviour could lead to changes to supply issues which need to be considered alongside demand issues. Work to understand this and other factors is required in order to inform the longer term approach.	The County Council to initiate work required to ascertain the effect that climate change will have on the assumptions surrounding water resources (quantity and quality).
V	40		A sensitivity analysis of Hampshire Land management and land use to climate change would help make informed decisions in the future.	An integrated impact analysis of climate change on Hampshire land management and land use which includes wider sustainability issues eg habitat and farming issues.	The County Council to work with partners to scope the requirements for and deliver an integrated impact analysis of climate change on Hampshire land management and make recommendations as a result.
VI	4	Community Leadership	Too many policies are too short term, we need to review the policy framework eg Uncertainty about climate change predictions causes problems for timely and adequate response of water companies to water resource issues.	Too many policies are too short term, we need to review the policy framework, and look at longer term plans to adapt to climate change (minimum 100 years).
VII	20		There are unclear messages about economics of adaptation measures and how effective they are.	There are unclear messages about economics of adaptation measures and how effective they are.	The County Council to work with SEEDA to ensure clarity and accuracy of messages about economics, etc.
VIII	36		A number of policies in SPDs and LAAs, eg building on brownfield before greenfield have not yet integrated the need for a spatial response to climate change. How to do this?	The spatial response to climate change needs to be integrated into policies in SPDs and LAAs to a greater extent.	The County Council to work with partners to scope the needs and deliver robust policies that embrace climate change adaptation.
IX	21	Coast	There needs to be a community engagement and multi-sector sea level rise group within Hampshire. It is important that this message of change is given to the local community.	Climate change will impact both normal tidal levels, and worsen the nature and frequency of extreme events on the coast. The community of Hampshire, (especially those living on or near the coast) need to better understand these impacts, and what actions are needed by them and others. All agencies need to work together to deliver this message and promote coastal adaptation response.	The County Council to work with coastal agencies to scope requirements and implement a delivery programme for coastal adaptation response.
X	28		Sea level rise in Hampshire has a lot of consequences such as loss of biodiversity, loss of open space along the coast, economy of the coastal fringe, social wellbeing, tourism, transport, ports, underground services, pollution. There is some research on some of these impacts but more needs to be carried out.	Sea level rise in Hampshire has a lot of consequences such as loss of biodiversity, loss of open space along the coast, economy of the coastal fringe, social wellbeing, tourism, transport, ports, underground services, key surface infrastructure, pollution. There is some research on some of these impacts but more needs to be carried out.	The County Council to scope the gaps, commission research. Might be shared role with DEFRA, GOSE, EA, etc to widen delivery beyond Hampshire.
XI	41		Coastal defence: options needed to be investigated such as where is the economic cut off between defending and retreating and the long term resistance of sea defences to inform choice over type.	Coastal defence poses a variety of options for responding to rising sea levels and other impacts of climate change. An understanding of the long term implications of different options is needed in order to make the right short term decisions and not foreclose future options.	The County Council to work with partners in a strategic role to scope the long term options for the coast incl. its own coastal land holdings.
XII	25	Education & Communication	Needs for an education strategy on climate impacts that reach as much of the population as possible, but it must engage with the population and they need to feel ownership of it.	Needs for an education strategy on climate impacts that reach as much of the population as possible (including both schools and the wider community), but it must engage with the population and they need to feel ownership of it.	The County Council to lead a development group of appropriate organisations to develop a strategy to engage with the community of Hampshire on climate change adaptation and deliver strategy with full buy-in.
XIII	34		Do we know what the baseline is to attitudes to climate change in Hampshire?	A better understanding of the baseline attitudes to climate change in Hampshire is required, earlier work carried out by the ESPACE project needs to be updated.	The County Council needs to do an updated survey to attitudes to climate change and compare to baseline in 2004.
XIV	56		If we are to change culture/behaviour we need to communicate smarter and more responsible.	If we are to change culture/behaviour we need to communicate smarter and more responsible.	The County Council to review existing programmes and scope potential requirements for Hampshire. Where appropriate partnership working to be used to deliver more effectively.
XV	45	Risk Management	Need to investigate how good our ability to complete recovery after an extreme event is, eg adult social care.	The County Council needs to investigate how good its ability is to complete recovery after an extreme event is, eg adult social care, or co-ordinating the stockpiling of essential supplies such as food, water or medicine.	The County Council to review with partners its disaster recovery plans, and make recommendations for any improvements that are required.
XVI	46		Monitoring whether or not the County Council are implementing the policies we think we are, apply wider as good practice.	It is unclear whether the County Council's decision making and policy delivery considers climate change impacts adequately. A review of the existing situation is required and steps taken to rectify shortcomings.	The County Council to review its decision making processes and policy delivery and identify improvements.
XVII	51		Insurance companies depend on sharing risks and costs of dealing with damaged properties - review Hampshire Risk Management Strategy incl. issues like insurance, social care.	The County Council needs to review its risk management, emergency planning (incl. aftermath management) and insurance situation in light of the impacts of climate change. Where weaknesses are identified a programme of remedial action is to be identified. Working in partnership to research wider insurance issues may be required	The County Council to review its own situation, and research wider insurance issues, link to ABI.
XVIII	37		How much influence does the County Council have in influencing partnerships, spatial planning, business and emergency planning? Identify the levers.	Many organisations in Hampshire are engaged in work to mitigate or adapt to climate change. Drivers for this vary between organisations. For the County Council to work with others an understanding of these drivers is required.	The County Council to map organisations and their response to climate change in order to understand their motivations and how partnership working on specific issues might be achieved and be of multiple benefit.
XIX	33		What makes communities work where they already have our future predicted climate - but don't forget other factors/similarities.	What makes communities work where they already have our future predicted climate - but don't forget other factors/similarities.	The County Council to play lead role in scoping and commissioning research, and make recommendations for further work.
XX	14		Improve existing preparedness and preventative health measures, eg reducing obesity; will mean that people are better able to cope in a heat wave - win/win.	Existing preparedness and preventative health measures can be enhanced and gaps identified where new or more proactive measures are required, by establishing a multi-agency approach and working collaboratively.	The County Council to bring together multi-agency group and scope existing situation and fill gaps to improve societal resilience to climate change.

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