Current Issues: Coastal Adaptation to Climate Change

Responding to climate change effects requires increasing awareness on the part of environmental planners, especially by those working in marine and coastal environments where such effects are keenly felt. This chapter covers the implications of climate change for planning, mostly as hazards expected to occur along coasts. The chapter also briefly mentions other types of hazards, not directly related to climate change, such as tsunamis. Mitigation and adaptation are two different strategies that planners use in confronting climate change. Mitigation refers to tackling the causes. Adaptation refers to coping with consequences and is the main approach in which planners will be involved. Adaptation policies should be appropriate to the context, guiding planners towards the achievement of multiple objectives, some of which need to be achieved regardless of the impacts of climate change.