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The climate change adaptation agenda has many aspects to it. Much discussion to date has centred on freak weather events, flooding and rising sea levels, and their impact on key buildings and essential infrastructure. The UKCP09 climate projections, published by the UK Climate Impacts Programme last month, provides us with the latest indication of what to expect here in the UK, including drier, warmer summers and wetter, warmer winters.

But planning for adaptation is not just something for governments, public authorities and utilities to worry about.

In fact, company law requires a director, when fulfilling his duty to act in a way which promotes his company, to consider the impact of the company’s operations on the community and the environment. When this legislation was drafted, I doubt climate change was a key driver, but it is clearly an environmental impact, and therefore relevant to the director of any company which has a significant carbon footprint.
Those involved in the planning process must also understand this important issue, since planning policy statements already acknowledge the need to consider adaptation when reaching policy decisions, particularly in light of the expected increased rainfall and its impact on flat, low lying areas beyond existing flood plains.

The insurance industry has been quick to respond to the risk associated with ignoring the need for adaptation. Around a third of all insurance claims are for weather related damage, and mitigation of loss by taking adaptive measures will become critical. Crucially, levels of cover, and premiums, are increasingly being assessed by reference to forward climate projections rather than past history.

We have heard very little from the medical profession, yet the public health impacts of climate change are potentially very serious indeed. There needs to be far greater awareness of the human dimension to climate change and the potential increase of serious diseases, poor sanitation and malnutrition. On current projections, these are going to cease being just third world issues.
The focus on flooding risk in the UK - subject of the recently published Flood and Water Management Bill - means our health issues will be predominantly water related. Health will always be compromised by a lack of clean water and diseases spread by dirty floodwater, so communities affected by flooding will be exposed to a wide range of bacteria and viruses.

The medical profession is only just waking up to these issues. It is good to see Professor Sir Muir Grey, the chief knowledge officer of the NHS, arguing recently that ignoring climate change is a neglect of duty and the medical profession should be campaigning as hard on the subject as Victorian medics did on cholera.

For further information please contact:

Andrew Whitehead, Partner
Head, Energy & Utilities
T: 44(0)870 763 1528
E: andrew.whitehead@martineau-uk.com