Making Hampshire Resilient to Climate Change
The County Council is taking meaningful action to reduce carbon emissions, as well as making sure that Hampshire is prepared for the impacts of climate change both now and in the future.
Building resilience to climate change will safeguard, strengthen and enhance not only the services we deliver but also Hampshire’s environment, economic prosperity and residents’ health and wellbeing.
What exactly is climate change resilience? Watch this 1 minute videoWhat climate change means for Hampshire
The impacts of climate change are already being experienced in Hampshire – flooding, heatwaves, extreme weather. As well as taking action to reduce emissions, we are also adapting to the impacts of climate change so our communities, infrastructure and environment can be better prepared.
Climate change does not just cause physical or financial damage, it can also have much deeper, longer-term effects on health and wellbeing. For these reasons the County Council is not only focused on reducing emissions but also on building resilience.
Find out about the three core approaches that are being taken:
Action is being taken across Hampshire County Council to make sure the services we provide and our county is resilient to the changing climate. We also know that joined-up partnership working will be vital to achieving this, for example through nature-based solutions to flooding, looking after public health, woodland creation and generating local renewable energy.
Overview
1. Better planning
2. Better management of the built and natural environment
3. Behaviour change
Click here to view the full video version
Climate change adaptation decision tool
To embed climate change considerations across all key decisions and ensure that departments within Hampshire County Council are considering how they can increase resilience to climate change, all Decision Reports now must include a climate change impact assessment.
The climate adaptation decision tool allows staff to assess the vulnerability of their projects to climate change impacts, such as heatwaves and flooding.
The purpose of the tool is to help staff understand what the potential climate impacts on their projects could be and help them consider what can be done to adapt their to help build resilience both now and in the future. Project leads have been highly motivated to use the tools, seeing them as adding value to their projects.
Read the blog written for the South East Climate Alliance to find out more.Find out how the tools have improved outcomes
The tools can improve outcomes across many areas:
One good example is a local school building and infrastructure project. It was only when these tools were used that it was found that extreme heat was a high risk to the future resilience of the school buildings - something that hadn’t previously been considered. The potential heat risk to the site was included in future work on the project.
Officers have also begun to consider climate impacts on health such as how volunteers may cope in periods of sustained hot weather, and how increased shading could be considered to mitigate against this.
The tools have also highlighted the importance of designing road drainage systems that can withstand major storm and flood events, which are becoming increasingly more frequent, to reduce the risk to people and property. Staff are also recognising how flooding could interrupt stock flow and project delivery, and they are making plans to deal with this.
How will this impact me?
Find out what climate change impacts look like near you, your flood risk and explore what you can do to build resilience to climate change at home.