BD-R-1: Consideration of climate change in landscape programmes | Umweltbundesamt

BD-R-1: Consideration of climate change in landscape programmes and framework plans

Landscape programmes and framework plans provide a platform for tangible objectives and principles of nature conservation and landscape management at the level of individual states and regions. Climate change impacts and the resulting challenges for the protection of biotopes and species are increasingly being incorporated in planning. However, the majority of plans still show a lack of tangible statements including objectives or measures related to climate change.

Climate change impacts increasingly considered in landscape planning

Land use has a major influence on biodiversity, which makes it one of the core starting points for the conservation of animals and plants and for the development of suitable habitats. Climate change therefore presents, in many respects, new challenges for a nature-compatible and future-oriented approach to controlling land use, in view of the fact that the competition for land is certain to increase. The expansion of renewable energies for the purpose of climate protection, but especially the use of biomass for energy generation entails the intensification of land use regionally by means of agriculture and forestry.

In order to safeguard biodiversity it is necessary when making decisions related to nature conservation, to take both direct and indirect impacts of climate change into account, to identify the essential objectives both in terms of concepts and planning and to prepare the requisite measures. Landscape planning therefore plays an essential role as a tool for encompassing contiguous areas in nature conservation (cf. Indicator RO-R-1). Programmes related to landscape planning incorporate important co-ordinating functions at the level of federal Länder, setting priorities in stipulations regarding requirements and measures in respect of nature conservation that are of relevance to the federal state concerned. Apart from programme-based objectives and guidelines for the nature conservation policies of a federal state, they also contain spatially tangible illustrations for instance on a specific state’s biotope network or on its areas of particular value in terms of nature conservation. Landscape framework plans are generated for planning regions, administrative districts or government districts. They illustrate the requirements of landscape programmes in a tangible form, contain proposals on the designation of priority areas and make statements that are specific to particular regions.

Unfortunately, regulations contained in individual Länder’s nature conservation legislation regarding the generation and updating of landscape programmes and landscape framework plans are not homogeneous. For example, the city states of Berlin, Bremen and Hamburg as well as the states of Saarland and since 2010 also Hesse have abolished the development of landscape framework plans.¹²⁸ In some cases, the current legal position also means that outdated landscape programmes do not have to be updated any more. Besides, the updating cycle for landscape framework plans also varies from one federal state to another. However, as before, there is still a rule in force according to which landscape programmes and landscape framework plans represent the central planning level which serves as a platform in which it is possible to embed any requirements on spatial planning resulting from climate change as well as requirements in respect of nature conservation.

As shown by an evaluation of 16 landscape programmes operated by Länder and the available landscape framework plans – there were 155 in 2020 – the impacts of climate change and the resulting requirements in terms of planning are not yet taken into consideration widely. However, as far as those plans are concerned that were analysed in respect of the period from 2000 and 2020, a distinct increase is noticeable in references to climate change. For example, climate change and themes relating to climate protection and adaptation to climate change in connection with nature conservation issues have been mentioned in slightly more than three quarters (76 %) of landscape programmes. The process of evaluation included statements made in the plans relating to land with both storage and sink functions for carbon. By contrast, a clear majority of plans has so far failed to include any descriptions of tangible impacts of climate change on biodiversity. According to the 2020 status, only approximately 22 % of landscape framework plans provide a rationale for individual nature conservation objectives and measures which are at least in part associated with climate change. The analyses undertaken do not permit any detailed statements regarding the specific technical depth or consideration of climate change in the plans analysed. Nevertheless, it is evident that landscape planning at the level of Länder and regions, with a view to the challenges of climate change, has so far included only scant statements on tangible objectives and measures.

Consideration categories regarding climate change in landscape programmes and landscape framework plans

1 Areas of land relevant to climate change (with storage and sink function for carbon) are mentioned in connection with nature conservation issues.

2 Impacts of climate change on biodiversity are described.

3a Some individual nature conservation objectives and measures are in part founded on reasons related to climate change.

3b Some individual nature conservation objectives and measures are based exclusively or predominantly on reasons related to climate change.

^{128 - Lipp T. 2016: Landschaftsrahmenplan. In: Riedel W., Lange H., Jedicke E., Reinke M. (Hg.): Landschaftsplanung. 3. Aufl. Springer. Berlin: 237-249. Landesportal Schleswig-Holstein 2021: Landschaftsrahmenplanung. https://www.schleswig-holstein.de/DE/Fachinhalte/L/landschaftsplanung/lp_03_Landschaftsrahmenplanung.html}