Adaptive capacity in small islands and Need for adaptation
low-lying coastal areas
Even if atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases
Adaptive capacity is the ability of a system to adjust to cli- could be held constant at today’s levels, sea level would
mate change (including variability and extremes), to mod- continue to rise for decades to centuries. This means
erate potential damages, to take advantage of opportuni- adaptation will be required in order to live with the sea-
ties, or to cope with the consequences
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. Natural systems level rise occurring during the 21st century and beyond.
have an inherently high ability to adapt to sea-level rise. Strategies include
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:
But this capacity is frequently compromised by human ac- 1) Accommodation through forward planning and ap-
tivities stressing or constraining these coastal ecosystems. propriate use of low-lying coastal regions (for ex-
ample, to ensure escape and emergency routes are
The vulnerability of human systems to sea-level rise is available for future flooding events and to increase
strongly influenced by economic, social, political, envi- the resilience of coastal developments and commu-
ronmental, institutional and cultural factors
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. But even nities). Example: the construction of cyclone storm-
a high adaptive capacity may not result in effective adap- surge shelters in Bangladesh, combined with effec-
tation if there is no commitment to sustained action
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. tive warning systems, which has saved many lives.
Importantly, in small island countries such as the Mal- 2) Protection via hard measures such as sea walls (Figure
dives, Kiribati and Tuvalu there is a shortage of the data 6C.15) for valuable locations and soft measures such as
and local expertise required to assess risks related to sea- increased beach nourishment. Example: the construc-
level rise. The low level of economic activity also makes tion of major dykes and levees to protect the 10 million
it difficult to cover the costs of adaptation
52
. Traditional people who live below sea level in the Netherlands.
knowledge is an additional resource to adaptation in 3) (Planned) Retreat through spatial planning, such as
such settings and should be carefully evaluated within implementation of no-build areas or building set-
adaptation planning
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. backs for areas susceptible to flooding and erosion.
Example: building setback distances in South Austral-
Over the years many climate change-related projects ia that take into account the 100-year erosional trend
have been undertaken in coastal and other low-lying are- and the effect of a 0.3 m rise in sea level by 2050.
as. But in most cases these have focused on assessments
of vulnerability and on the building of human and insti- Adaptation plans must not only consider modern urban
tutional capacity. A community-level adaptation project development but also allow for the protection of histori-
implemented in the Pacific region
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was one of the first cal sites (such as Venice, Italy or Jamestown, Virginia,
projects world-wide that went beyond the planning and USA) and sensitive environmental areas and ecosystems
capacity-building stages and included measures to facili- – developing management policies that simultaneously
tate adequate adaptation. This illustrates that the scale address these potentially conflicting goals presents a ma-
of adaptation for sea-level rise that is required is much jor challenge. With proactive planning we can substan-
larger than the current level of activity. tially lessen the impact of 21st century sea-level rise.
CHAPTER 6C ICE AND SEA-LEVEL CHANGE 175