Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Shane Ross, T. D. has published, for consultation, a draft framework to develop a Climate Change Adaptation approach for the transport sector in Ireland.
Climate Change Adaptation refers to how we plan for the negative effects of climate change and take suitable action to prevent or minimise damage it causes.
This draft transport adaptation plan is being prepared as part of the National Climate Change Adaptation Framework (NCCAF)(link is external), developed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in line with EU guidelines, as well as the provisions of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015. Its objective is to identify options for transport infrastructure and services that will help to build resilience against the impacts of climate change. It is focussed on assessing our vulnerability to key climate variables and their likely impacts on our transport system and covers the five transport sectors of road, rail, aviation, ports and bus services.
Minister Ross said: “Recent experiences of extreme weather events have demonstrated some of the vulnerabilities of our transport infrastructure and services. It is vital that we seek to future-proof the efficient functioning of our transport system so that we can continue to accrue the many benefits of transport to the Irish economy.”