The Edinburgh Adapts 2016-2020 action plan aims to protect and enhance the city's wildlife and green spaces against climate-related problems.
Planning and development will play a key role to ensure the city adapts, such as the use of green infrastructure to offset predicted changes in weather and rainfall, as well as naturalising flood prevention measures when feasible. The initiative will also work with communities and raise awareness of the impacts of climate change on local areas.
The programme has been developed by the Edinburgh Sustainable Development Partnership in collaboration with Adaptation Scotland and more than 40 key stakeholders from across the city.
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It has been developed on the foundations of the Resilient Edinburgh Climate Change Adaptation Framework, which was approved by the City of Edinburgh Council's Transport and Environment Committee in 2014.
The plans progress will be monitored by a steering group consisting of representatives from the Council, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, Scottish Wildlife Trust, Edinburgh Living Landscapes, The University of Edinburgh, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh College, Historic Environment Scotland, Edinburgh World Heritage and Adaptation Scotland.
Climate Change Secretary Roseanna Cunningham, who helped launch the initiative on Thursday, 01 December, said: "Tackling the effects of climate change is crucial as the challenges of increasingly unpredictable weather and extreme conditions are only likely to increase if we don't take action now.
"That's why I'm delighted to welcome Edinburgh's first Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan which is ambitious but achievable with the medium to long-term vision of Edinburgh Adapts telling the story of Edinburgh's adaptation journey to 2050.
"It provides us with an illustration of what we could do to make us more resilient to the impacts of climate change when public and private stakeholders, the third sector and community groups work together."
(LM/CD)
