KlimREG – climate change suitable regional plan
Background and Goals
How a climate change suitable regional plan could look like gets analysed in the project KlimREG since December 2014. KlimREG studies regional planning requirements for climate adaptation, develops innovative approaches for further development and tests them in three regional planning regions in the course of the reorganisation of their regional plans. The central product of the project is a practical, modular constructed methodology manual for creating a climate change suitable regional plan.
The results from KlimaMORO clarify that the regional planning practice is not taking into account all relevant action areas of climate change adaptation evenly. This is especially true for some areas of action of the preventive flood protection in which the planning practice has deficits with the recommendations of MKRO. It is therefore important to better exploit the control potential of regional planning and to increase the effectiveness of regional planning provisions for the implementation of adaptation strategies.
Objective
KlimREG, together with three practice test regions, develops and tests a method manual for creating a climate change suitable regional plan. Given corresponding findings from previous pilot projects of regional planning and other research projects as well as new requirements are included in the regional planning in order to develop possible stipulations for climate-friendly spatial development. The focus of the pilot project lies on the MKRO-activity-areas 'Preventive Flood Protection', 'Protection from Heat Effects', 'Local Water Shortages' and 'Coastal protection'.
Content time
Research area/region
Country
- Germany
Region of implementation (all German federal states)
- Northrhine-Westphalia
- Schleswig-Holstein
- Thuringia
Spatial resolution
three regional practice test regions:
Schleswig-Holstein - Planungsraum III,
Mittelthüringen,
Regionalverband Ruhr
Steps in the process of adaptation to climate change
Step 1: Understand and describe climate change
Approach and results
No separate climate scenario developed: using the findings of KlimaMORO I and II and the model regions involved there.
Parameter (climate signals)
- River flooding
- Heat waves
- Altered rainfall patterns
- Higher average temperatures
- Sea level rise und storm surges
- Dry periods
Time horizon
- short term = next year’s / decades
- medium term = to 2050
Step 2a: Identify and assess risks - climate effects and impact
Approach and results
The results of the pilot projects of regional planning 'Spatial Development Strategies for Climate Change' (KlimaMORO) highlight that dealing with the consequences of climate change already is a crucial area for regional planning. Action areas of climate change adaptation where most regional plans set specifications are the displacement of the habitats of animals and plants, regional water shortages, coastal protection and securing retention areas as part of preventive flood protection in river basins. Also the protection against heat impact and most parts of the preventive flood protection in river basins became more important in the past few years. Inland flooding in recent years, however, show that there are implementation deficiencies in particular in preventive flood protection.
Step 2b: Identify and assess risks - Vulnerability, risks and chances
Approach and results
The climate is changing and the consequences will be felt more strongly. This shows, among other things, in the increased damage from floods in recent years. In addition to the increasing threat from floods, more frequent heavy rains, heat waves and droughts affect the life, housing and economic activity of the people. Regions have to face these challenges and take into account the expected impact of climate change at an early stage. It is about averting of danger but also about exploring opportunities.
Step 3: Develop and compare measures
Measures and/or strategies
The partial goals of KlimREG to develop a 'Climate Suitable Regional Plan' are:
- Preparation of a synopsis of the state of planning practice;
- Instrument check who shall, in addition to the synopsis of the existing instruments, also collect and develop instrument innovations and test them for their feasibility;
- Systematisation of regional planning instruments for climate change in a practical compilation of evaluated instruments;
- Practical test of the policy options arising from the instrument set, using the concrete example of three to be updated regional plans.
Conflicts / synergies / sustainability
It identifies conflicts and synergies between the regional planning instruments.
Step 4: Plan and implement measures
Measures and/or strategies
For a coherent presentation of the results for regional planning and policy-makers KlimREG has plans to develop the following products:
- a practical method manual illustrating innovative regional planning provisions for dealing with the consequences of climate change, as a practical aid for a „Climate Suitable Regional Plan“;
- a modular instrument kit and the integration of the kit in the web portal klimastadtraum.de of BBSR case studies, instrument characteristics and an instrument kit.
Instrument kit: systematisation of existing instruments in an instrument kit, the identification of instrument deficits and the development of innovative instruments. This work is based on the following research key questions:
- How can the existing regional planning instruments on climate change be systematised?
- Where do the stakeholders see deficits?
- How can the effectiveness of instruments be improved?
- What new instruments or adaptations are necessary?
- Which instrumental innovations can be realised from the perspective of regional planning practice?
Practical test of the climate change suitable regional plan: testing of the developed instrument innovations for their feasibility and effectiveness. The following research key questions shall support the work:
- How do the instruments of a climate change suitable regional plan perform in a practical test?
- What is a prototypical approach for a climate change suitable regional plan?
- How can the knowledge and application of existing legislation for spatial planning adaptation to climate change be improved?
- How can a regular review and realignment of plans as well as of temporary and conditional specifications be carried out?
- How can the integration of assessments by technical authorities be introduced and implemented?
Furthermore, conflicts and synergies between the individual instruments will be identified. The results form an important basis for the conceptual design for the method manual „Climate Change Suitable Regional Plan“.
Procedural guideline Climate Change Suitable Regional Plan: Preparation of a practice and application oriented method handbook 'Climate Change Suitable Regional Plan' that will consist of three parts. The first part contains the instrument kit. In this section, the regional planning stakeholders can read up on the existing climate change-related instruments as well as on the newly developed or adapted instruments by KlimREG. The second part of the method handbook focuses on the implementation of the instruments during the creation of a regional plan. Based on the assumption that not only one but several climate change-related fields of action are addressed in many regions, the method manual presents instrumental typologies. The case typologies provides different instruments from the various fields of action that can interact e.g. in a positive or negative way, and include potential conflict and synergy areas between the instruments. The third part contains a practical guide for a prototypical approach for creating as well as of minimum characteristics and quality standards of climate change suitable regional plan.
Participants
Funding / Financing
Federal Ministery of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI)
Project management
Federal Institute for Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development (BBSR) at the Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning (BBR)
Cooperation/Partners
National research assistance:
HafenCity University Hamburg (HCU) in cooperation with REM Consult and Frank Reitzig.
Cooperation:
- Staatskanzlei Schleswig-Holstein, Abt. Landesplanung, Planungsraum III;
- Regionalverband Ruhr;
- Regionale Planungsgemeinschaft Mittelthüringen;
Contact
HafenCity Universität Hamburg
Hebebrandstraße 1
22297 Hamburg
