Adapting to Climate Change in the Caribbean (ACCC)

GECAFS Meeting February 24-26, 2003 CIMH, Barbados Marcia Chevannes Creary Project Component Manager, ACCC

Adapting to Climate Change in the Caribbean (ACCC)

• Funded by The Canadian Climate Change Development Fund (CCCDF) through the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) • Implemented in 12 CARICOM countries from September.

2001 to August. 2004.

• Designed to maintain momentum on climate change issues initiated under CPACC • Lead into the follow-on MACC program being proposed to the Global Environment Facility (GEF)

Adapting to Climate Change in the Caribbean Region Consists of 9 Components

• 1: Detailed Project Design and Business Plan for Regional Climate Change Centre • 2: Public Education and Outreach (PEO) • 3: Integrating Climate Change into a Physical Planning Process using a Risk Management Approach • 4: Strengthening Technical Capacity

• 5: Integrating Adaptation Planning in Environmental Assessments for National and Regional Development Projects • 6: Implementation Strategies for Adaptation in the Water Sector • 7: Formulation of Adaptation Strategies to Protect Human Health • 8: Adaptation Strategies for Agriculture and Food Security • 9: Fostering Collaboration and Cooperation with non-CARICOM Countries

Component 1 Detailed Project Design and Business Plan for Regional Climate Change Centre Objective: To provide for detailed planning and approval of all projects and to develop a sustainable business plan for the Regional Climate Change Centre Status: This project is in the final stages of completion. The MACC project is expected to be submitted to the World Bank for approval in March 2003 following the finalizing of MOU’s with cooperating agencies and sign-off by beneficiaries.

Component 2 Public Education and Outreach (PEO) Objective: To develop and implement a Regional Climate Change Public Education and Outreach (PEO) Strategy for participating CARICOM countries. Status: This project will be implemented by the GEF-funded Mainstreaming to Adaptation to Climate change (MACC) project, due to commence in March 2003.

Component 3 Integrating Climate Change into Physical Planning Process using a Risk Management Approach Objective: To build capacity for integrating adaptation to climate change risks into the physical planning process, in the private sector and governments, using a risk management approach. Status: A series of workshops were conducted in 2002 to look at risk management in the tourism, financial, water and agricultural sectors. Coming out of recommendations from these workshops a draft document entitled “Guidelines on Risk Management for Climate Change in the Caribbean” is being developed and is expected to be completed in March 2003.

Component 4 Strengthening Technical Capacity Objective: To respond to the gaps and needs in regional and national technical capabilities identified in the first three years of the CPACC program.

Status: 1.

On-going staff training and development is taking place at the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology (CIMH) to strengthening their climate change capacity; 2.

Eight Students from five countries are participating in the Master’s Degree course in climate change at the University of West Indies

3.

Component 4 Strengthening Technical Capacity (continued) Training was provided for two persons on statistical downscaling techniques to assist in the development of capability for definitive regional and local climate change projections. Preliminary climate change scenarios are expected to be produced by April 2003.

4.

Dialogue established with SPREP and the Pacific Islands Climate Change Assistance Program (PICCAP) for collaboration on issues related to climate change between the Caribbean and the South Pacific.

Component 5 Integrating Adaptation Planning in Environmental Assessment for National and Regional Projects Objective: To integrate adaptation planning into the project cycle for international and national development activities Status: Collaboration is taking place with the Disaster Mitigation Facility of the Caribbean Development Bank with a view to integrating climate change and natural hazards considerations into the EIA process of the region. In addition the EIA process within CARICOM is under review.

Component 6 Implementation Strategies for Adaptation in the Water Sector Objective: To establish a comprehensive set of adaptation strategies in the water sector and the establishment of a pilot project in a select country.

Status Guidelines for adaptation in the water sector have been developed. The Water Resources Authority, Jamaica is to undertake a pilot study to evaluate the guidelines and incorporate the new risk management guidelines being developed for the region.

Component 7 Formulation of Adaptation Strategies to Protect Human Health Objective: To build upon the risk management assessment in the health sector in Component 3 and develop a strategy for the protection of human health and the establishment of pilot projects in select countries.

Status Information on health and climate variation relationships are being collected by CEHI, SENES, UWI, and CAREC with a view to developing adaptation strategies for public health.

Project 8: Adaptation Strategies for Agriculture and Food Objective: To develop national and regional strategies that will provide for food security and sustainable rural livelihoods in the Caribbean region.

Status: Draft document in final stages of preparation to include the following chapters • Climate change scenarios for factors affecting agriculture, fisheries and imported food • Agriculture and fisheries in the Caribbean • Imported food commodities • Implication for food security and adaptation to climate change

Component 9 Fostering Collaboration/Cooperation with non CARICOM countries Objective: To focus on the formulation of a strategic framework to foster closer collaboration/cooperation in the implementation of climate change adaptation activities in CARICOM countries and other non-CARICOM countries in the Caribbean region (British, French, Latin and Dutch territories).

Status: There is on-going collaboration with Cuba, Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico in the areas of health and climate variability, downscaling of climate scenarios and exchange of weather related data.

GECAFS Caribbean Food Systems Project Story Line 1: Local Level Target: Food systems in resource-poor communities based on fishing and locally produced food crops Aim: To reduce food system vulnerability especially in relation to changes in climate variability.

Story Line 2: Regional Level Target: Caribbean regional food provision Aim: To develop regional-level strategies to reduce the additional complication GEC would bring to regional food provision, given changing preferential export markets.

Collaboration between ACCC/MACC and GECAFS Areas of collaboration include: • Development of adaptation strategies and policy formulation in the areas of agriculture, food security and water resources • Building on the ongoing work of the ACCC and its continuation under the MACC program.

• Building on links and dialogue already established with national and regional institutions (such as CIMH, CEHI, UWI, etc) • Downscaling of global climate models and the development of regional and local level scenarios for use in decision making and policy formulation.