EU project presents the interim results of assessing the vulnerability of sectors of the economy to climate change on the example of the Mykolaiv region

On May 24, the experts of the project “Strengthening the Capacity of Regional and local administrations for Implementation and Enforcement of EU Environmental and climate change legislation and Development of infrastructure projects”, financed by the EU (APENA 3), presented the interim results of the assessment of the vulnerability of economic sectors to climate change on the example of the Mykolaiv region. The presentation took place in the city of Kyiv in a mixed format. More than 100 participants attended the event: experts, the representatives of local government, and the public sector from various regions of Ukraine.

“The issue of climate change is a colossal challenge for the world community. For Ukraine, the full-scale russian invasion caused even greater challenges, so the issue of forming an effective climate policy both at the state and egional levels is currently key to ensuring a “green” recovery and further development of our country. We are convinced that the reconstruction of Ukraine should take into account climate goals and the goals of green transformation. It should be a “green” recovery with mandatory consideration of forecast trends of climate change, assessments of risks and vulnerability of socio-economic sectors and natural components to climate change, and inclusion of the issue of adaptation to climate change in regional development strategies, development strategies of territorial communities and action plans from their implementation, as well as to the programs of economic and social development of regions, districts, cities”, Viktoriia Kyreieva, Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine.

“Even before the full-scale russian invasion, Ukraine confirmed its intention to join the European Green Deal. Now this decision is even more important due to the status of a candidate country for EU membership and because our common goal is to “build back better” in Ukraine. The active involvement of local authorities, communities, and their initiative in green reconstruction addressing long-term climate changes, and adaptation to these changes as well as the participation of a wide circle of stakeholders in the decision-making, is crucial for success. Therefore, the work that the APENA 3 project is currently doing in close cooperation with the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine is very important. We hope that the results of this work will become part of the post-war reconstruction planning” – commented Olga Simak, sector manager for environment, the EU Delegation to Ukraine.

The presentation informed about APENA 3 assistance in the preparation of the Climate Change Adaptation Strategy for Mykolayiv region and assistance on fine-tuning the metodological recommendations that will become a guiding document for this work in the future. The strategy for Mykolayiv region is the first one that APENA 3 assists to develop, and similar assistance will be provided in other two regions, Lviv and Ivano-Frankivsk.

The expert on Mykolaiv region of the APENA 3 project Maria Zinchenko briefed about the efforts related to collection and analysis of the data used in the analysis underlining lack of information from those parts of Mykolaiv region, which were or remain under russian occupation (14% and 4 % of the territory respectively). Pre-war data used in the current work will need to be adjusted once new statistics is available. The expert on climate of the APENA 3 project Vira Balabukh presented climate analysis based on meteorological data of 5 stations in Mykolaiv region for 60 years. The changes in average annual temperatures in the Mykolaiv region exceed the general global indicators, and the tendency accelerates during the last 30 years with more frequent and intense thunderstorms, heavy rains, and squalls. The russian aggression enhanced the risks of fire in steppe and other parts of the region further.

“Climate changes that used to take 1,500 years are now happening in the lifetime of one generation of people. Ukraine is located in a region where climate change is occurring at a high rate. Yes, the rate of temperature increase in our country is three times higher than global indicators,” concluded expert Vira Balabukh.

Climatologist Svitlana Krakovska, a key expert of the APENA 3 project, presented the approach to and the interim results of the analysis of sensitivity and vulnerability of individual sectors to climate change. The modelling was based on two Representative Concentration Pathways and covered potential impact of five categories of 32 in total climatic impact-drivers (e.g. heat and cold, wet and dry, snow and ice, wind speed and coastal) on several sectors and activity areas (e.g. agriculture, forestry, water resources, biodiversity, critical infrastructure, buildings, cultural heritage, tourism). Importance of addressing the climate change challenges and opportunities at stage of planning the regional development, including with the view of post-war recovery was stressed by the expert. Ms. Svitlana Krakovska emphasized, “The results obtained by our scientists are not even forecasts, but rather projections. How everything will happen in the next 50-100 years now depends on humanity, that is, on us”.

The work on the Climate Change Adaptation Strategy for Mykolayiv region shall be finished by the end of summer and work on the strategies for Lviv and Ivano-Frankivsk regions are under development and will be ready soon after the strategy for Mykolaiv region. APENA 3 will continue informing about its progress.

Background information

The project “Strengthening the Capacity of Regional and local administrations for Implementation and Enforcement of EU Environmental and climate change legislation and Development of infrastructure projects” is financed by the European Union to provide long-term support in raising Ukrainian public authorities’ capacities at local and regional level in designing and implementing key reforms stemming from the Association Agreement and DCFTA, including the capacity to carry out legal approximation process with the EU in areas of Environmental Impact Assessment, Strategic Environmental Assessment, waste management, and climate change adaptation.

For additional information, please contact APENA 3 PR & Communications Manager Julia Pashkovska: julia.pashkovska@egis-ukraina.com , +38 099 984 98 41