Transcript Sustainable Urban Development in the Pacific

Moving from Risk to Resilience: Sustainable
Urban Development in the Pacific
Allison Woodruff
Urban Development Specialist
Asian Development Bank
Annual Average Economic Losses due
to Natural Hazards
Source: Pacific Catastrophe Risk Assessment and Financing Initiative
Elements of Risk
=
Risk Exposure
• Exposure is influenced by physical location
• Urban centers tend to be located along coasts
and/or in floodplains
• Urban centers concentrate people,
infrastructure, economic activities and social
services
100%
900
90%
800
80%
700
70%
600
60%
500
50%
400
40%
300
30%
200
20%
100
10%
-
0%
Proportion of Total Population
Total Urban Population (000)
1,000
Risk Vulnerability
• Vulnerability is influenced by socio-economic
factors, urban governance
• Ability to respond and recover from shocks
• Poverty is linked to high vulnerability
• Basic service provision is the first line of
defense
Poverty and Risk Vulnerability are
Linked
Local Government Response to Risk
IPCC WGII AR5 Chapter on Urban Areas:
• Urban governments are at the heart of successful
urban climate adaptation because so much
adaptation depends on local assessments and
integrating adaptation into local investments, policies
and regulatory frameworks
• Well governed cities with universal provision of
infrastructure and services have a strong base for
building climate resilience
Risk Assessment
Risk Sensitive Land Use Planning and
Development Controls
• Zoning to guide
development away from
hazard ‘hotspots’ to
reduce exposure
• Development controls
e.g. building codes to
reduce vulnerability
Identifying Appropriate Locations for
Lifeline Infrastructure
Climate-Proofing of Major
Infrastructure Investments
Opportunities to ‘Build Back Better’
Following a Disaster
Ecosystem-Based Adaptation
Constraint: Risk Information
• Pacific Risk Information System
• Pacific Climate Futures web-tool
• Community-based vulnerability assessment e.g.
Cook Islands
• Informal settlement mapping
• Capacity of urban planners to analyze and apply
risk information
Constraint: Land Management Systems
• Increasingly urban growth is taking place in
peri-urban areas that fall under customary
land ownership
• Similarly ‘urban villages’ being absorbed into
urban areas as these grow
• Pohnpei, FSM piloted participatory
approaches to land use planning by involving
traditional landowners
Constraint: Institutional Coordination
• Many different stakeholders involved in urban
management (national government , local
government, sector agencies, utility service
providers, private sector , communities disaster
management and climate change offices)
• Nadi Basin Coordination Committee in Fiji offers
one example of how urban stakeholders can
effectively coordinate to address hazard risks
Conclusions
• Urban areas are particularly exposed and
vulnerable to risk
• Municipalities can play a critical role in
responding to risk
• Risk is often most effectively addressed when
integrated with urban planning and management
measures
• The Pacific faces a number of constraints in
putting into place sustainable urban development
measures
For more information:
http://www.adb.org/
[email protected]