Newsletters
February 2024 Newsletter
Posted on 26/04/24 by Yisum Heneghan
📢 Announcements
City of London Corporation install smart climate sensor network – Tim Munday, City of London
As part of its Climate Action Strategy the City Corporation has installed a network of climate recording sensors across the Square Mile. The series of temperature, air pressure, soil moisture, and drainage gully sensors have been placed at various strategic locations to understand how climate change is really impacting the City. This will provide data to help the City Corporation to avoid disruption due to flooding, overheating and water stress. As well as beginning to track longer-term trends, the sensors will enable the City Corporation to monitor the effectiveness of the climate resilience interventions it is undertaking as part of its £6.8 million Cool Streets and Greening programme.
🗒️ Reports released
London Climate Resilience Review interim report: The independent Review was commissioned by the Mayor of London and chaired by Emma Howard Boyd, former chair of the Environment Agency and now chair of the Green Finance Institute. It was launched in June 2023 and has been engaging widely with stakeholders across London to hear about the impacts and actions taken and now needed to adapt to a changing climate.
Environment Audit Committee Heat resilience and sustainable cooling: a report which the LCCP contributed evidence to and is acknowledged in. “At the local level we heard about the work of the London Climate Change Partnership—an independent partnership comprising public, private and community sector organisations that play a role in preparing London for extreme weather and climate change today and in the future. The Partnership facilitates collaboration on research, delivery programmes, awareness and knowledge transfer on climate adaptation and resilience across London. It is, however, a voluntary initiative with no dedicated funding of its own and seems to be very much the exception rather than the rule.” Very many thanks again to LCCP partner Francis Heil (AtkinsRealis) for his oral evidence and to all of those who contributed to preparing the written evidence.
“Turning Up the Heat”: report launch on the growing threat of heat risk in the UK: The LSE Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment will be launching their new report on the growing threat of heat risk in the UK. The report discusses the impacts of extreme heat on health and wellbeing, the built and natural environment, infrastructure and the economy, and explores gaps in national policy on heat. It provides insights from first responders, local and national government and agencies, utilities and civil society organisations who had direct experience of the 2022 heatwaves in England. (Link to launch event also included below).
📰 News
Covid-19 recovery spending could negatively impact climate adaptation ESG Clarity – 2nd Feb 2024
How climate activists finally seized the issue of adaptation in 2023 The Conversation – 31st Jan 2024
Mitigating The Climate Adaptation Gap Forbes – 29th Jan 2024
Amazon Rainforest Faces Devastating Drought as Climate Crisis Worsens International Business Times – 25th Jan 2024
‘The wildlife that has come is phenomenal’: the UK farmers holding off floods the natural way The Guardian – 11 Jan 2024
200,000 properties at risk because of deteriorating flood defences, say MPs The Independent – 17th Jan 2024
Warmer winters and more flooding will be the norm in the UK, scientists warn The Guardian – 6th Jan 2024
📂 Consultations
Environment Agency consultation: charge proposals for water discharges: The Environment Agency has reviewed their permitting and regulatory activity for water quality activities alongside the water industry transformation programme. Their charges proposals for water discharges (including groundwater activities) are set out in this consultation. They invite you to share your views on their proposed changes to charge. Consultation ends on 11 March 2024.
The Future Homes and Buildings Standards: 2023 consultation: The government is committed to improving energy efficiency and reducing the carbon emissions of new homes and non-domestic buildings. This consultation sets out our plans for achieving the Future Homes Standard and Future Buildings Standard. It sets out technical proposals for changes to the Building Regulations, the associated Approved Document guidance and calculation methods. This consultation was scheduled for 12 weeks from 13 December 2023 to 6 March 2024. This deadline has now been extended another 3 weeks to 11:59 on 27 March 2024.