Adapting to climate change impacts

We need to prepare for life in a different Scotland

Even if we reduced our carbon emissions dramatically tomorrow, the climate is set to keep changing for decades to come. So while we must also limit further damage, we all need to think about how to change what we do for life in a changed climate.

Thinking long term...

Choices we make which last a long time are the most critical. Woodlands take decades to grow, and we need to decide what sort of planting and management now will provide useful and beautiful woods in a century's time. Houses, bridges, roads and railways may be affected by rising sea levels, local flooding events, higher heatwave temperatures and future needs for fertile farmland.

Thinking about risks in an uncertain world

We don't know exactly what is going to happen, nor how fast. So in adapting to a changing climate we shouldn't put all our eggs in one basket especially in relation to longer-term choices we should try to prepare for a range of different circumstances. For example, the plantation forests of Scotland are dominated by a single species Sitka spruce. Foresters are already considering whether to diversify plantations to limit the possible impact of a pest or disease which has become lethal to these trees under climate change.

Thinking about natural systems

We all depend on the natural world for a range of benefits, from plentiful rain and clean water, to crops pollinated by bees, and the wildlife and beauty of our wild landscapes. We have largely used these benefits as if they are a right, but in a different, climate change-Scotland they may not continue to be available in the same ways. More information will be needed on how these natural systems are working and will be changed by climate change impacts.