Adaptation to climate change

Context

The OECD Secretariat convened a thematic meeting as part of the OECD Task Force on Climate Change Adaptation to present and discuss the OECD draft report on “Adapting to a changing climate in the management of coastal zones” [ENV/EPOC/WPCID(2021)1]. The meeting was organised in complement to the second OECD Task Force on Climate Change Adaptation (30 November 2020), the Working Party on Climate, Investment and Development (1 December 2020), and the Working Party on Biodiversity, Water and Ecosystems (1 and 2 March 2021).

The draft report provides an overview of the current and projected effects of climate change on coastal zones, in terms of both environmental and socio-economic impacts. In addition, the draft report assesses the relevance of the integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) approach, providing a first discussion on how the ICZM concept has accounted for - or could be adapted to account for - the risks and challenges resulting from a changing climate. This analysis aims to inform a potential update of the OECD Council Recommendation on Integrated Coastal Zone Management adopted in 1992.

Objectives of the meeting

  - Present the draft report’s findings on the state of play of coastal zones, in light of growing climate risks;
  - Offer an opportunity for participants to provide timely feedback on the draft report;
  - Discuss areas for further work the OECD could engage in, especially in light of a potential update of the OECD Recommendation on ICZM;
  - Facilitate the exchange of experiences and good practices among country delegates and experts.

Presentations

 Presentation by the Secretariat

1. Adapting to a changing climate in the management of coastal zones, Catherine Gamper and Marta Arbinolo, OECD Secretariat

Country presentations

1. Sea-level rise and coastal adaptation, Robert J. Nicholls, Director of the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and Professor at the University of East Anglia
   
   
2. Enhancing Climate Resilience through the National Coastal zone management program, Laura Petes, Manager of the Communities Program, Office for Coastal Management, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), The United States
   
   
3. Climate services for coastal adaptation to sea-level rise in France, Gonéri Le Cozannet, Research Scientist and Project Manager at the Bureau de Recherches Géologiques et Minières (BRGM), French Geological Survey