climate policies, strategies and institutions in sri lanka and sustainable development
TRANSCRIPT
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V.Kirushnananthy
“A New Country in Next Sixty Months-
Five Point Plan”
• In 2016, government hope to put into place strategies towards the
successful implementation of the five pillar development plan that has
been endorsed by the people.
• Five pillar development plan is focusing on the five pillars such as
building up the economy, fighting corruption, ensuring freedoms for
Sri Lankan citizens, developing the infrastructure & investment and
developing education.
• Currently it is engaged in the process of formulating strategies that take
into account our
– geographic location
– natural resources
– human resources and
– the significance of our ancient civilization and culture.
?
Climate
Climate in Sri Lanka
• Tropical country
• Moderated by ocean winds and considerable moisture
• No significant annual variation in temperature in Sri Lanka
due to latitude
• significant regional variation in temperature due to altitude
• Rainfall pattern of the country is influenced by monsoon
winds from the Indian ocean and Bay of Bengal
• Being a tropical island located in a disaster prone region, Sri Lanka is
vulnerable to impacts of climate change experiencing disaster prone
weather extremes.
• As a significant population of the country is directly dependent on
weather-reliant livelihoods such as agriculture and fisheries, adverse
changes in weather patterns could lead to chaotic conditions.
• Among the community groups that are more vulnerable to climate
change impacts are residents in coastal areas, rain-fed farmers in the dry
zone, fishing community, workers in the estate sector and small-scale
producers of export crops.
Climate change
• Human interference with the climate system is one area where de-
coupling is particularly important.
• There are no alternatives to many of the climate services provided by
nature, and several of the changes prompted by increasing
concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere may prove to be
irreversible.
• The national level actions have to play a critical role while international
cooperation is also important.
Milestones of national cooperation
• Two major milestones of this national initiative are the National Climate
Change
– Adaptation Strategy for Sri Lanka prepared in 2010
– National Climate Change Policy (NCCP) formulated in 2012
• The National Adaptation Plan for Climate Change Impacts in Sri Lanka
(NAP) presented as the next logical step of this initiative in 2015 for
2016-2025 by Ministry of Mahaweli Development & Environment.
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• Climate-related policies, such as energy efficiency, are often
economically beneficial, improve energy security, and reduce local
pollutant emissions.
• Climate change is influenced not only by the climate-specific policies
but also by the mix of development choices and the resulting
development trajectories.
• Making development more sustainable by changing development
paths can thus make a significant contribution to climate goals.
Climate Change Policies
• The national policy on climate change of a country is usually
comprised of these major categories.
– Mitigation policies
– Adaptation policies
– Other supportive policies
• The broad scope of climate change effects and their impacts over
various economic/social sectors and geographic regions, these
policy categories themselves are complex entities that involve
multiple strategies.
• Among the major criteria that should determine the appropriate
choice of climate change policies are effectiveness, efficiency,
equity and sustainability.
Climate policies in
Sri Lanka
Policy out look for Sri Lanka • Recent impacts from flooding and severe weather events emphasize the
risks that national infrastructure could face and the significant economic
damage such events bring.
• To reduce the risk infrastructure faces from climate change, planned but
flexible adaptation responses are required. It is not about eliminating all
risks from climate change or extreme weather.
• It is about making the necessary interventions to the development plans
and practices to make sure what is being built will withstand the adverse
effects of any future event.
• The policy outlook in this perspective is positive for Sri Lanka. Most
importantly, the government’s vision document has also put a considerable
emphasis on the importance of building cities that are sustainable and are
able to withstand the effects of climate change.
The National Climate Change
Policy of Sri Lanka
Strategies in Sri Lanka
related to Climate
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National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy
• The NCCAS lays out a framework for action for the 2011-2016 period,
with the aim of moving Sri Lanka towards a bright and climate change
resilient future.
• The NCCAS mirrors and supports Sri Lanka’s national development
strategy and is aimed at ensuring its success and sustainability via
– 5 strategic thrusts
– 25 thematic areas of action
– 91 priority adaptation measures
Mainstream Climate Change
Adaptation into National
Planning and Development
Strategy 1
Strategy 2
Enable Climate Resilient and
Healthy Human Settlements
Minimize Climate
Change Impacts on
Food Security
Strategy 3
Strategy 4
Improve Climate
Resilience of
Key Economic Drivers
Safeguard Natural Resources
and Biodiversity from
Climate Change Impacts
Strategy 5
SVPs have been developed for the following key groupings of sectors,
where climate vulnerabilities are expected to be critical in the Sri Lankan
context:
Agriculture and Fisheries
Water
Health
Urban Development, Human Settlements & Economic Infrastructure
Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services
National Adaptation Plan for Climate
Change Impacts in Sri Lanka 2016-2025
• The NAP covers adaptation needs at two levels
– adaptation needs of key vulnerable sectors
– cross-cutting national needs of adaptation
• Nine vulnerable sectors were identified in the consultation process;
– food security
– water
– coastal sector
– health
– human settlements
– bio diversity
– tourism and recreation
– export development
– industry energy-transportation
Connectivity to National Climate Change
Policy and the Strategy
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Relevant policy documents
• National Action Plan for Haritha Lanka Programme: identified climate
change as the third mission and selected certain strategies/actions relating to
both mitigation and adaptation(reducing GHG emissions)
• Sri Lanka Comprehensive Disaster Management Programme 2014-
2018 (SLCDMP): a close connection to NAP identifying climate change as
a type of disaster and proposes actions to overcome the consequences of it.
• National Action Programme for Combating the Degradation of Lands
in Sri Lanka (NAP-CDL): recognized climate change as a factor that can
intensify the degradation of land resources in future. It highlighted issues
such as soil erosion and landslides in up- and mid-country wet zone (upper
watershed) areas as critical issues together with actions to overcome them.
• Coastal Zone Management Plan (CZMP): recognized climate change as
a factor that can intensify the degradation of coastal resources in future. Its
main concerns include coastal erosion, coastal pollution and degradation of
coastal habitats. The NAP identifies impacts of climate change on the
coastal sector and proposes adaptation measures to overcome them.
• National Physical Plan (NPP): identified global warming as a
concern that can affect physical development activities of the
country. In addition, it covers someaspects of disaster risk
management too.
• Sri Lanka Water Development Report 2010 (SLWDP): identified
climate change as a major driver of change in the water resources
sector.
• Draft National Agriculture Policy: identified ‘Assuring food
security’ and ‘Ensuring environment sustainability’ as two major
pillars of the policy in making
• National Tree Planting Month declared by the Ministry of the Environment,
setting different themes focusing on creative and sustainable planting.
• It will accompany Punarudaya (renaissance), a larger program to drive
sustainable development.
• Climate Policy Network is a website dedicated to sharing ideas, information,
insights, news and resources on how to face the challenge of climate change.
• It is launched by the Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka (IPS) to inform
policy makers on better strategies and to create awareness among stakeholders on
different aspects of the challenges faced.
• SLCCS is a national offset scheme, which supports local clean projects to
benefit from climate finance for the emission reduction or removal of Green
House Gases(GHG).
• Purpose of this scheme is to enhance the credibility, transparency and quality of
emission reductions efforts within Sri Lanka.
Wana Ropa program
Climate Policy Network (CLIMATEnet)
Sri Lanka Carbon Crediting Scheme (SLCCS)
Sri Lanka’s Obligations under the
UNFCCC and Kyoto Protocol
•Formulate policies and initiate measures that would mitigate emissions of GHG
and enhance sinks and reservoirs
•Development of national inventories on GHG Emissions and baselines
•Promote scientific, technological, socio-economic and other research on climate
system
Integrated Climate Information Management System
•To Assist Farmers Vulnerable To Climate Change, 2016
•To improve the effectiveness of adaptation decisions of farmers and
policymakers/experts by establishing and pilot-testing models of Integrated
Climate Information Management Systems (ICIMS)
• In collaboration with the Department of Meteorology of Sri Lanka (DOM),
Janathakshan (formerly Practical Action, Sri Lanka) and the South Asian
Network for Development and Environmental Economics (SANDEE)
Disaster Resilient City Development Strategies
for Sri Lanka Cities
• The concept of climate resilient cities has now spread beyond the
metropolitan city of Colombo, and there are new initiatives focusing on
other townships as well, which are disaster prone and highly urbanized.
One such initiative is the “Disaster Resilient City Development Strategies
for Sri Lanka Cities”.
• The project is implemented by UNHABITAT in partnership with the
Urban Development Authority (UDA), Ministry of Local Government and
Provincial Councils, and the Disaster Management Centre.
• This project aims to establish sustainable disaster resilient, healthy cities
and townships in disaster prone regions of Sri Lanka. It will be
implemented in Kalmunai, Batticaloa, Ratnapura, and Balangoda, which
are vulnerable to disasters.
Governance structures
relevant to
climate change
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Ministry of
Environment &
Natural
Resources
Climate change
secretariat,
Ministry of
Environment &
Natural
Resources
Sri Lanka
Carbon Fund
(Private)
Limited
• "Climate Change Issues in Sri Lanka“
• The acceleration of the warming process since then had first worried scientists who had been engaged in research in this area and then civil society leaders and finally policy makers and politicians.
• The consequences of such an accelerated global warming have also been identified as catastrophic.
• The range of identified impact consisted of many disasters. Some of them are the gradual desertification of the earth, loss of productivity of agriculture, rising of sea levels submerging many low lying countries under water, unexpected and sporadic forest fires and finally making the earth an uninhabitable place for species.
Institute of
Policy
Studies of
Sri Lanka
(IPS)
Sri Lanka
Climate
Fund
Ministry of
Disaster
Management
•National Policy on Disaster Management
includes
•Disaster Risk Reduction(DRR) to be
mainstreamed into overall planning and
development
•Potential impacts of Climate Change on
disaster risks will be addressed.
•Indigenous knowledge and material to
mitigate impacts of hazards including
climate change will be promoted.
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Department
of
Meteorology
Department
of
Agriculture
This foundation, officially chartered as
a nonprofit organization in 2003,
partners with the Sri Lankan
Government and academic institutions
to produce research on climate
predictions and monitoring, disaster
management and early warning
systems. Current projects focus on
modeling the effects of climate change
on agricultural systems, specifically
rice and sugarcane.
Foundation
For
Environment,
Climate and
Technology
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In addition,
• National Science Foundation
• National Research council
• Ministry of Mahaweli Development & Environment
• Ministry of Finance and Planning
• Universities
• Banks and Financial institutes
• Urban Development Authority……….
Policy challenges in climate adaptation in Sri Lanka
• A pragmatic approach towards adaptation policy has to fulfill a
few essential steps.
• They are:
– identify and evaluate likely impacts of climate change
– assess vulnerability/adaptive capacity of key stakeholders
– identify major gaps that affect effective actions against
impacts
– appraise alternative strategies for overcoming gaps so that
the country can adapt to impacts in a successful manner.
• As developing economies, there is an immense pressure for countries
like Sri Lanka to target its infrastructure development to rural areas.
• Despite this, studies show that the urban poverty is also considerably
high and on par with rural poverty. To make things worse, majority of
the urban infrastructure in Sri Lanka is not in a state to withstand
impacts of climate change, such as heavy rains and floods.
• It has been a constant struggle for urban cities like Colombo to
withstand the adverse effects, which sometimes shuts down the
functionality of the metropolitan for several days.
• Infrastructure policy makers had enough evidence to address these
issues yet, lack of proper planning and funds were often holding them
back.
• Fortunately, with the post-conflict development boom, opportunities
were presented, policies were drafted and projects were initiated to make
urban cities more resilient to climate change.
Literature cited 1. Climate Change Secre-tariat (2011) Second National Communication on Climate Change,
Ministry of Environment, Colombo, Sri Lanka.
2. Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka (2013) Chapter 8: Facing Climate Change
Threats: The Importance of Better Information. Sri Lanka State of the Economy 2013,
Colombo, Sri Lanka
3. Institute of Policy Studies (2013) Climate Change Issues in Sri Lanka. A compilation of
articles published in CLIMATEnetblog from Jan-Dec. 2013, Colombo, Sri Lanka
4. Ministry of Environment (2012) National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy for Sri
Lanka: 2011-2016, Colombo, Sri Lanka
5. Ministry of Environment (2012) The National Climate Change Policy of Sri Lanka,
Colombo, Sri Lanka
6. Ministry of Environment and Renewable Energy (2012) Technology Needs Assessment
and Technology Action Plans for Climate Change Adaptation: Technology Action Plan,
Colombo, Sri Lanka
7. Ministry of Environment and Renewable Energy (2012) Technology Needs Assessment
and Technology Action Plans for Climate Change Mitigation: Technology Action Plan,
Colombo, Sri Lanka
8. Senaratne, A., N. Perera and K. Wickramasinghe (2009) Mainstreaming Climate Change
for Sustainable Development in Sri Lanka: Towards a National Agenda for Action.
Working Paper Series No.14,Institute of Policy Studies, Colombo, Sri Lanka