CLISP – Climate Change Adaptation by Spatial Planning in the Alpine Space
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The CLISP project is an international project in the Alpine Space that focusses on the issue of climate change and spatial planning. For this purpose, a vulnerability analysis will be carried out in 10 local model regions and the "climate change fitness" of existing spatial planning systems will be assessed.
It is assumed that climate change will have a strong impact on natural and socio-economic systems and spatial development. This represents a threat to current living and working conditions, as well as for regional development and growth potential, and could reinforce disparities between the regions and endanger the local, social cohesion in the Alpine Space.
CLISP aims at preventing, reducing and mitigating climate-change related spatial conflicts, vulnerability of spatial development and spatial structures to adverse climate change impacts, and consequential damages and costs. CLISP intends to contribute to sustainable, climate-proof spatial planning and territorial development in the Alpine Space. CLISP is focused on the challenges to spatial planning in the Alpine Space in the face of the climate change, and will contribute to climate change adaptation by making spatial planning and development "climate-proof".
Oberösterreich, Communitá Montana Suol D´Aleramo, Communitá Montana Alta Val Lemme e Alto Ovadese, Berchtesgadener Land, Miesbach, Gorenska, Graubünden, Liezen, Pinzgau-Pongau, Südtirol
A1B and B1 IPCC emissions scenarios; global climate models: ECHAM5, HadCm3, ARPEGE; regional climate models: REMO, CLM, RegCM3, ALADIN (see also ENSEMBLES project).
Climate change scenarios project continuously rising temperatures for the Alps up to +4 °C until the end of the 21st century, with an accelerated increase in the second half of the century. As in the past, the Alps will be exposed to a stronger warming than in the European average. Temperatures will rise strongest in higher elevations (> 1500 m above sea level), where an increase of +4.2°C is expected. Changes in precipitation amounts are projected to be rather moderate in terms of the yearly total, and likely to decrease south of the Alpine main ridge. However, significant changes are expected in seasonal distribution of precipitation amounts: summers are projected to become considerably drier in all regions, and in particular in the south, whereas in winter and spring precipitation will increase in the north and north-west and decrease in the south and south-east of the Alps. Winter precipitation is expected to increasingly fall as rain rather than snow, leading to a rise of the snow line and fewer days with snow cover. As a consequence, winter run-off will increase in most regions, and summer run-off will generally decrease.
Anticipated consequences of climate change include, in particular, an increase in temperature extremes, a higher variability in precipitation between years, the further retreat of glaciers and thawing of permafrost zones, more frequent water scarcity in summer, reduced snow reliability in winter, and an increase in the occurrence and magnitude of extreme weather events and natural hazards.
Vulnerability is seen as a product of exposure, susceptibility and adaptive capacity (according to the IPCC). Strategic recommendations are given for the climate change vulnerability assessment.
The results of the vulnerability assessment and the climate change fitness of the spatial planning instruments and processes are: The climate-proofing of spatial planning is a basic necessity, i.e., a "climate change fitness check" of spatial planning measures and projects should become standard practice. Not only do the effects of projects and plans on the climate need to be assessed (e.g. decreased/increased carbon emission), but also the possible influence of a changing climate on the projects and plans (for example, defining a reference scenario for flooding). For the "climate-proofing" of spatial planning policies and programs, existing Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) procedures and instruments can be used.
Climate change information and vulnerability assessments are provided across all sectors to support climate adaptation processes, in particular, the development of adaptation strategies and measures in spatial planning. The adaptation measures in the model regions will be assessed in terms of their effectiveness for spatial planning.
Special attention must be paid to adaptation measures for climate-proof planning in the following four key areas:
European Union, Austrian states of Salzburg, Upper Austria, and Styria (cooperation between Austria, Switzerland, Germany, Liechtenstein, Italy and Slovenia)
Umweltbundesamt (Austria)
•BMLFUW – Bundesministerium für Land- und Forstwirtschaft, Umwelt und Wasserwirtschaft, Sektion Forst (Österreich);
•Salzburg – Amt der Salzburger Landesregierung, Abteilung Raumplanung;
•Steiermark – Amt der Steiermärkischen Landesregierung;
•Oberösterreich - Amt der Oberösterreichischen Landesregierung;
•STMWIVT - Bayerisches Staatsministerium für Wirtschaft, Infrastruktur, Verkehr und Technologie;
•MATT - Ministerio dell'Ambiente e della Tutela del Territorio e del Mare;
•EURAC - Accademia Europea di Bolzano;
•Alessandria - Provincia di Alessandria;
•UIRS - Urbanistini institut Republike Slovenije;
•UNEP - United Nations Environment Programme;
•ARE - Schweizer Bundesamt für Raumentwicklung, Strategiegruppe Polititk des Ländlichen Raumes;
•Graubünden - Amt für Raumentwicklung;
•Liechtenstein, Fürstentum Liechtenstein, Ressort Umwelt, Raum, Land- und Waldwirtschaft;
Umweltbundesamt GmbH
Spittelauer Lände 5
A-1090 Wien