Agenda Item 6b
Report to: / East Sussex Strategic Partnership (ESSP)Date: / 19 April 2012
Title: / Coastal Communities 2150
Author: / John Gower, Coastal Communities 2150 Project Manager, Environment Agency
Purpose: / For information
Recommendation:
That the East Sussex Strategic Partnership:
1. Note the contents of this paper
2. Advise on how to best get businesses to participate in the local ‘Coastal Futures’ engagement group.
1. Introduction/Background
1.1 Coastal Communities 2150 (CC2150) is a communications project to engage communities who are vulnerable to long term coastal climate change. We will work with ‘at risk’ communities so they understand the long term impacts and enable themselves to take action. By looking forward to the year 2150 we will raise awareness about consequences of decisions taken in the shorter term.
1.2 The project is 50 per cent funded by the INTERREG 2 Seas Programme. It began in January 2011 and will run until 31 December 2013.
1.3 CC2150 has six partners: The Environment Agency, Kent and Hampshire County Councils, Alterra from the Netherlands, the Province of West Vlaanderen and the Belgium Agency for Maritime and Coastal Services - Coastal Division. The Environment Agency is the lead partner for the project. For more information see the project website at www.CC2150.eu .
2.0 Project Benefits
2.1 The project outcomes will be:
· Increased awareness of climate change for coastal communities.
· Pilot communities will be better prepared to deal with the risks and make the most of any opportunities from climate change.
· Communities will produce their own long term vision and an action plan to put this in place.
2.2 The Project outputs will include:
· A set of communications tools to explain climate change and integrate working on coastal issues.
· Coastal visions fora number of pilot areas, decided by local people, reflecting their needs and aspirations to manage and adapt to future coastal climate change.
· On-line engagement tools that can be used across other European coastal communities.
· Best practice guides and a ‘Community of Practice’ that will be adopted by local communities to share ideas and learning.
.
3.0 Pilot Areas
3.1 The Environment Agency has chosen the Seaford, Newhaven, Lower Ouse area; Hampshire County Council are using their CCATCH the Solent project, Kent County Council is working in the Romney Marshes, Margate and the Isle of Sheppy. Alterra are engaging with farmers in the Province of Zeeland and the Belgium partners are looking at the entire national coastline, albeit only 67 km long.
3.2 On16 January 2012 the Environment Agency held a public open information evening in Newhaven to promote the project. The evening was an outstanding success with over 50 attendees and more than 20 applications for the 10 places on their ‘Coastal Futures’ engagement group.
3.3 The level of public understanding, and acceptance of coastal climate change, was very good. There were no ‘climate change ‘deniers’ and only one person thought it was not worth worrying about ’ because the government won’t do anything anyway’. There was a realisation that change is coming and agreement that we should start to work on the best way of dealing with it.
3.4 The Environment Agency developed a series of posters to explain and show the effects of climate change and provided local flood risk maps. These were very important in presenting the case for adaptation and proved very popular.
3.5 Despite accepting invitations, no businesses or chamber of commerce representatives attended the open evening. Newhaven Port did attend and are now an active member of the Coastal Futures group.
4.0 Next Steps
4.1 The project is proceeding very well. The Environment Agency pilot communities have engaged with the project and Newhaven Town Council in particular are being very supportive. They are considering using the same engagement group to develop their local ‘Neighbourhood Plan’.
4.2 The Environment Agency will work with the newly formed engagement group and the project partners to develop an engagement strategy and tools to communicate the long term impacts of coastal climate change. They will then help the group develop their vision and an action plan. Kent County Council will shortly be producing a report by the University of Kent on the psychological barriers to climate change.
John Gower 29 February 2012