Heydon opens consultation on climate change adaptation plan
The consultation was announced today (Thursday, August 7) by Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Martin Heydon.
Climate change adaptation refers to the process of adjusting to current or anticipated effects of climate change, and the new 'Sectoral Adaptation Plan for the Agriculture, Forestry and Seafood Sectors' outlines these plans for the agri-sector.
According to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, climate change adaptation is not a one-off emergency response, but a "strategic and proactive" effort to build the resilience of our economy, communities, and ecosystems.
Effective adaptation aims to reduce the long-term costs of climate-related disruptions while "seizing any new opportunities that a changing climate may present", the department said.
This process includes preparing for a range of events such as floods, fodder shortages, and severe storms affecting harbours, forests, and other vulnerable sectors.
The draft plan highlights a number of case studies identifying how the sectors have been "impacted by changing weather patterns" and what steps can be taken towards "building resilience".
Feedback on the plan, and suggestions on how the department and various sectors in agriculture can best prepare for future climate-related challenges, can be submitted before the consultation closes on September 4.
Commenting on the consultation, Minister Heydon said: "We have made considerable progress in mainstreaming adaptation into policy development."
The minister said that the adaptation already forms part of several department policies for agriculture and forestry.
He added: "In addition to reducing our emissions, we need to ensure that our food production system is resilient and ready to adapt to future climate risks.
"Farmers, landowners, and fishermen are very much to the forefront of dealing with the impacts of a changing climate in their everyday activities.
"However, climate change is not just an issue for the primary producer; it is something that everyone in the production chain needs to consider," Minister Heydon said.
"The Irish agriculture, forestry and seafood sectors will not only be impacted by changes in climate here at home, but also by climate change globally," he added.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Agriland
20 hours ago
- Agriland
Heydon opens consultation on climate change adaptation plan
A public consultation has been opened on a new climate change adaptation plan for the agriculture and forestry sectors. The consultation was announced today (Thursday, August 7) by Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Martin Heydon. Climate change adaptation refers to the process of adjusting to current or anticipated effects of climate change, and the new 'Sectoral Adaptation Plan for the Agriculture, Forestry and Seafood Sectors' outlines these plans for the agri-sector. According to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, climate change adaptation is not a one-off emergency response, but a "strategic and proactive" effort to build the resilience of our economy, communities, and ecosystems. Effective adaptation aims to reduce the long-term costs of climate-related disruptions while "seizing any new opportunities that a changing climate may present", the department said. This process includes preparing for a range of events such as floods, fodder shortages, and severe storms affecting harbours, forests, and other vulnerable sectors. The draft plan highlights a number of case studies identifying how the sectors have been "impacted by changing weather patterns" and what steps can be taken towards "building resilience". Feedback on the plan, and suggestions on how the department and various sectors in agriculture can best prepare for future climate-related challenges, can be submitted before the consultation closes on September 4. Commenting on the consultation, Minister Heydon said: "We have made considerable progress in mainstreaming adaptation into policy development." The minister said that the adaptation already forms part of several department policies for agriculture and forestry. He added: "In addition to reducing our emissions, we need to ensure that our food production system is resilient and ready to adapt to future climate risks. "Farmers, landowners, and fishermen are very much to the forefront of dealing with the impacts of a changing climate in their everyday activities. "However, climate change is not just an issue for the primary producer; it is something that everyone in the production chain needs to consider," Minister Heydon said. "The Irish agriculture, forestry and seafood sectors will not only be impacted by changes in climate here at home, but also by climate change globally," he added.
The Irish Sun
21 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
‘Too hot' people cry over new 39C & 40C holiday warning for Irish tourists as blistering heatwave sweeps popular spots
Homes, bars, and restaurants have been evacuated HOTTING UP 'Too hot' people cry over new 39C & 40C holiday warning for Irish tourists as blistering heatwave sweeps popular spots BLISTERING heatwaves are sweeping some of Ireland's favourite holiday hotspots, with some declaring the weather is simply "too hot". Both Spain and France have been bearing the brunt of temperatures as high as 40C. Advertisement 3 Temperatures will reach a scorching 40C in some areas Credit: x 3 Irish holidaygoers may have to rethink their plans Credit: x And a series of heat warnings have been put in place across both spots. The European countries are wildly popular among Irish holidaygoers in the summer months. Each year, thousands of families descend on the coastlines to soak up the sun and local culture. But this year, jetsetters have had to rethink their plans after temperatures on the continent soared. Advertisement It's likely that many tourists will spend much of their holiday inside to escape the heat. As Spain and France hit 40C, wildfires have spread across both countries. It emerged just yesterday that hotels, bars, and restaurants have been evacuated in the wake of the freak weather event. The fire, which started at a campervan site in the Cadiz province of Adalusia, began around 4pm on Tuesday. Advertisement From there, it easily spread across dry land toward the N-340 motorway. Wildfires erupt again in Spain & south of France killing at least one as tourists, hotels and beach bars evacuated Since then, all homes, bars, restaurants, and hotels between La Pena and Casas De Porros have been evacuated. Caravans in various parks have already been consumed by the flames, while the Wawa Hotel and multiple beach bars have been evacuated. Residents have been urged to avoid the area La Pena and Casas de Porros, while beachgoers have been warned to stay away. Advertisement Alan O'Reilly of Carlow Weather took to social media to share the news of the scorching temperatures. Posting on Facebook, he said: "A large number of weather warnings for Spain today and next few days for heatwave bringing temperatures above normal and could also get up to 40c in parts of Southern France. "Gran Canaria also has warning for up to 39c. Meanwhile in Ireland we might hit 21c." 'THEY CAN KEEP IT' Shocked punters took to the comment sections to exclaim their shock. Advertisement One person said: "Just back from Galicia, exceptionally warm weather for that part of the country, the land is parched, can't imagine what it is like in the south and east. "Climate Change having worry impact." Another commented: "I'm maxed at about 38C." A third put in: "Currently in Gran Canaria, will let you know how hot it gets." Advertisement And a fourth penned: "They can keep it!!" Another declared: "Too hot". According to AEMET, a warm and dry air mass from the African continent is pushing across the Iberian Peninsula, combining with high pressure and strong sunshine to create hazardous conditions across much of Spain. 3 Weather bosses took to social media to share the update Credit: x
RTÉ News
a day ago
- RTÉ News
Are hot Irish days worsening due to climate change?
Analysis: A climate attribution study has found that last month's mini-heatwave can be linked to human-influenced climate change While the two day "mini-heatwave" of mid-July was a pleasant surprise for some, it posed the question if hot Irish days are worsening due to climate change. A new EPA funded project WASITUS (Weather Attribution Science Irish operaTional User Service) aims to answer just such questions quickly and robustly to ensure better societal and policy responses to our rapidly changing climate. Observational records maintained by Met Éireann show that overall temperatures in Ireland are increasing, and the latest IPCC report concluded that this was unequivocally due to human activities. In addition, we can now say for certain that the two-day "mini-heatwave" July 11th and 12th last was made more likely and more severe due to human activities. From RTÉ News, climate change made Europe's July heatwave up to 4C hotter The higher than normal temperatures this spring and summer have already seen the public reach for lighter clothing and head to the beach on multiple occasions. On June 30th, highs of 29.6°C were registered in Roscommon. In contrast, the highest summertime temperature of last year was 26.6°C. For context, Ireland's all-time temperature record in June 1887 sits at 33.3°C, while the second highest temperature on record is 33.0°C which was seen in 2022. In the days before the mid-July heatwave, Met Éireann forecasted that temperatures may exceed 27°C and it was possible that they would reach the low 30s on Saturday. This understandably sounded like a good excuse for ice-cream and a trip to the beach for many, but posed worrying thoughts in the minds of climate scientists. In our first rapid attribution study, we sought to establish if we can link this "mini-heatwave" to human-influenced climate change. Following methods established by World Weather Attribution the 2-day heat was analysed to see if, and how, human-influenced climate change had altered the likelihood, and severity. From RTÉ Radio 1's Morning Ireland, how well prepared is Ireland for the effects of climate change? The heatwave that happened in today's climate was compared with how it would have been expected to occur in a 1.3°C colder, pre-industrial climate, before humans started actively warming the planet. We also compared this to a potential future date, where the climate is a further 1.3°C warmer. This is something that, on current emissions trajectories, will be sadly reached at some point later this century and will be potentially experienced by many of our younger citizens. By comparing these three cases, we can analyse if, and how, climate change is altering the regularity and intensity of these events. Focusing on the regularity of our mid-July "mini-heatwave", it was found that the high temperatures of over 27°C, experienced over these two days, would have been expected to occur once in every 14 years in a pre-industrial climate. Now, with 1.3°C of human-caused global warming, similar two-day high temperatures are expected to happen once in every 6 years. Worse, with a further 1.3°C of warming, the same event would occur once in every 2.5 years. Interestingly, we found the temperature of the two-day "mini-heatwave" increased similarly to global warming in general. In pre-industrial times, the two-day event would be expected to be about 1.3°C cooler. In the future, we expect a similar event to be around 1.4°C warmer. These are maximum temperatures averaged across Ireland and they do vary based on location. Paying particular attention to the high temperatures of July 12th, a 28°C+ temperature day would have been expected once in every 21 years in a 1.3°C cooler climate. However, in a 1.3°C warmer climate from now, we expect it will become a once in every three years event. Yes, it's been hotter before but, in the Met Éireann gridded daily temperature record which starts in 1961, five of the eight hotter two-days streaks, and four of the five hotter single days, have occurred since 2000. That metaphor about frogs being slowly boiled in a pot and thinking how lovely it is? That's quite literally us. From RTÉ Brainstorm, where did all the historical Irish weather data go? While the media often portray heatwaves as good fun with pictures of beachgoers, the truth is that there are many negative impacts. Hotter, drier conditions lead to an increased risk of forest fire, negative heat related health impacts (particularly for those vulnerable members of society), animal health impacts and a potential increase in injuries and fatalities due to water-based accidents. Understanding how our weather has changed, and is set to change further with increased global warming, can help us adapt and prepare for future hot weather events. We aim is to build an operational event attribution capability for Ireland. We will regularly undertake event attribution studies like this one within days or weeks of a noteworthy extreme climate event. The analysis, depending upon the type of the event being considered, will be carried out in collaboration with agencies such as Met Éireann, the EPA, OPW and the Marine Institute. Analysis of past events of the last 10 to 20 years will also be carried out as part of the project to gain a better understanding of how our extreme weather events have changed over the last few decades and the role (or otherwise) of humans in loading the proverbial dice. We will also be undertaking outreach with impacted communities to understand the impact and utility of our work with a view to improving the usefulness of the studies to those who need them most.
