Climate Change and Local Government:

Opportunities and Challenges

Navraj Singh GhaleighSenior Lecturer in Climate Law

Edinburgh Universityn.ghaleigh@ed.ac.uk

Take Away Messages

1) LG has huge mitigation role, esp building, waste and transport (c.40% of total), and leadership

2) Local context determines opportunities for action

3) Local authorities to develop their own plans of action

4) To ensure adequacy of 3), national government should support LG (i.e. co-finance mitigation

policies) and impose compulsory duty to develop PoA and implement them

Benefits of LG Action

1) Raises profile of LG as leaders on climate change2) Cost savings

3) Infrastructure improvement4) Showcase their activities

5) Learn from peers6) Access ‘excellence’ and know-how

7) Multiple co-benefits

The Climate Problem

Massive global carbon reductions required (i.e. 80% reductions by 2050)

If not, strong likelihood of:

Temperature rises 5CSea level rises > 80cm

Impacts of fresh water, agricultural patterns, rainfall, airborne diseases, animal migration etc

Major resource conflicts (“You can’t separate environmental policy from economic policy or energy

policy”: Chuck Hagel)

Role of Local Government

Most CC attention focused on ‘top down’/UNFCCC policy

‘Bottom Up’?:

Local and regional authorities deliver most government policy:

c.70% of EU policy delivered by LG60% of mitigation

90% of adaptation measures

International Programmes

C40 Cities - http://www.c40.org/about

The Climate Group - States and Regions program

WRI Protocol on Community Level GHG Inventories

ICLEI - http://www.iclei.org/

UNFCCC’s new NAZCA programme (Non-state Actor Zone for Climate Action)

UK Policy – Climate Change Act

Large emission reductions required by law:

34% by 202050% by 2025

c.80% by 2050

(baseline: 1990 levels)

Role of Local Government: Context

UK Climate Change Committee (2012)

Scope for Local Government

UK Climate Change Committee (2012)

Focus for Local Government

UK Climate Change Committee (2012)

Role of Local Government: Action

3 mains areas of action:

1) Retrofit/renovate public buildings and infrastructure to make better use of water, power, heat etc

2) Leadership function via own investments and initiatives3) Contract on the basis of green procurement principles,

i.e. stipulate performance standards

Multiplier effect and Advantage of Data

e.g.1: Energy Efficiency in Housing

UK Climate Change Committee (2012)

e.g.2: District Heating

UK Climate Change Committee (2012)

e.g.3: Transport Behaviour

UK Climate Change Committee (2012)

e.g.4: Waste

UK Climate Change Committee (2012)

e.g.5: Power

UK Climate Change Committee (2012)

Local Context Important

UK Climate Change Committee (2012)

‘Co-Benefits’

UK Climate Change Committee (2012)

LG Operations

UK Climate Change Committee (2012)

Adaptation

UK Climate Change Committee (2012)

EU Covenant of Mayors (2008)

6000 mayors from across Europe (representing 190m citizens), voluntarily

committed to:

Reduce emissions >20% by 2020Via action of EE and RES

Signatories submitted a plan of action after 12 months, reported on PoA every 2 yrs

By 2014 4000 plans adopted

Sources:

1) UK Climate Change Committee, Report on Local Authorities (2012) @ http://tinyurl.com/ltsjj99

2) UK Local Govt Association @ http://www.local.gov.uk/climate-change

3) OECD, “Climate Change Policy in the UK”, ECO/WKP(2011)000

4) OECD, “Cities and Climate Change” @ http://tinyurl.com/osxsuqu

5) Lockwood M, “The Political Sustainability of Climate Policy: The Case of the UK Climate Change Act” (2013) 23

Global Environmental Change 1339